From Waste Appliances to New: LG Electronics Launches 'Waste Refrigerant Recovery and Refurbishment Business'

Signed Agreement with Ministry of Environment for Circular Economy Leadership and Industrial Complex Support

Formed Consortium with LX Pantos, Chilseo Recycling Center, and Others

Establishing Waste Refrigerant Recovery and Refining System, Aiming to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 150,000 Tons Annually

LG Electronics has launched initiatives to recover and recycle hazardous materials generated at the disposal stage of home appliances and has begun a demonstration project for its home appliance refurbishment business, which only includes products that pass strict quality standards, thereby promoting the expansion of a circular resource ecosystem for home appliances.

An LG Electronics employee is conducting a quality inspection of a refurbished washing machine. LG Electronics

On June 19, at the POSCO Center in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, LG Electronics announced that it had signed an "Agreement to Foster and Support Leading Companies and Industrial Complexes for the Circular Economy" in the presence of Songhwan Kim, Minister of Climate, Energy, and Environment; Gap Saeng Moon, President of Korea Environment Corporation; Seungtae Baik, Executive Vice President and Head of Home Appliance & Air Solution (HS) Company at LG Electronics; as well as other government and corporate officials.

This agreement includes participation from 16 companies, including LG Electronics, POSCO, Hyundai Steel, PKC, and Samyang Foods. In four sectors—electrical and electronics, semiconductor materials, steel (raw materials/low-carbon processes), and food—the companies will promote various tasks to realize a circular economy, such as strengthening the use of recycled materials, circulating by-products from production processes, improving packaging materials, and reducing waste through reuse and repair.

To carry out projects in the electrical and electronics sector, LG Electronics formed a consortium with LX Pantos, a comprehensive logistics company; Chilseo Recycling Center, a home appliance recycling specialist; OwnR2Tech, a manufacturer of regenerated refrigerants; and Gyeongnam Technopark, a local research institute. Together, these companies and institutions will jointly implement the "Project for the Recovery and Recycling of Waste Refrigerants from Electrical and Electronic Products and the Establishment of a Refurbishment System."

Once LX Pantos establishes a systematic collection and management system for discarded home appliances, Chilseo Recycling Center will dismantle the appliances and extract the internal refrigerant. Then, OwnR2Tech will develop technologies to improve the efficiency of refining waste refrigerants for reuse, while Gyeongnam Technopark will be responsible for establishing a refrigerant recovery system based on cooperation with local governments, standardizing management procedures, and reviewing practical effectiveness between policies and the field.

Through this value chain, LG Electronics plans to expand its annual waste refrigerant recovery to 81 tons by 2030, about seven times the amount recovered in 2024. This is enough to supply approximately 100,000 6-pyeong wall-mounted air conditioners. If achieved, the greenhouse gas reduction effect is estimated to be about 150,000 tons per year, which is equivalent to the annual emissions of around 30,000 passenger cars. LG Electronics intends to create a circular structure by using the high-purity regenerated refrigerants refined from waste refrigerants in the production of new products and after-sales service (A/S) in the future.

The company is also conducting a demonstration project for its refurbished product business. LG Electronics aims to standardize the entire process—from collection, diagnosis, and repair to verification—and to provide the same level of quality assurance as new products for refurbished items by subjecting them to rigorous quality inspections for appearance, performance, and safety. Once verification is complete, the refurbished products will be sold with priority to small business owners through the LG Electronics Business Mall as part of a support policy.

Beyond this system, LG Electronics has consistently carried out various resource circulation activities. Since 2022, it has been running the "Battery Turn" campaign, a customer-participation resource circulation initiative that collects used vacuum cleaner batteries to practice both environmental protection and community love. In addition, by applying lightweight composite fiber materials to OLED TVs, LG Electronics has reduced plastic usage by about 40% compared to LCD TVs of the same size.

Such activities have also been recognized in the global market. This year, LG Electronics was selected as part of the "Top 1%" for the third consecutive year in the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) by global credit rating agency S&P Global. The company has also been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World) for 14 consecutive years and received an "AA" grade in the ESG assessment by prominent global ESG rating agency MSCI.

Executive Vice President Baik Seungtae stated, "We will deliver unprecedented customer experiences with new products and solutions while realizing a sustainable future through carbon reduction and resource circulation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.