SK chemicals Partners with Ministry of the Interior and Safety and Local Governments to Create a Leading Waste Banner Recycling Model

“Establishing a Complete Circular System for Waste Banners Through Public-Private Collaboration”

• Signing of MOU on Waste Banner Recycling for Regional and Corporate Co-Prosperity
• Led by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, with Participation from Five Local Governments: Sejong, Gangneung, Cheongju, Naju, and Changwon
• Establishing a Leading Model to Raise Waste Banner Recycling Rate from 30% to 100%

ULSAN, South Korea, June 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — To reduce waste from discarded banners, SK chemicals has joined hands with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, local governments, and private companies.

SK chemicals (President & CEO Ahn Jae-hyun) announced on the 5th that it signed a ‘Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on waste banner recycling for regional and corporate co-prosperity’ at its Ulsan Plant in Nam-gu, Ulsan, together with five local governments, REVELOP, Sejinplus, and Kakao.

This agreement is part of a collaborative project among the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, local governments, and companies to establish a virtuous cycle for waste banners—collecting discarded banners, converting them into raw materials through chemical technology, and recycling them into new products.

Under the agreement, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety will support coordination between local governments and companies to promote mutual growth. The five participating local governments—Sejong, Gangneung, Cheongju, Naju, and Changwon—will collect waste banners generated within their jurisdictions to establish a stable supply system, while also working to promote the adoption of products made from the recycled raw materials derived from these banners.

SK chemicals will be responsible for fully breaking down the collected waste banners at the molecular level using depolymerization-based circular recycling technology and converting them into recycled PET materials. Following the agreement, the recycled materials will first be applied to electrical and electronic products through mechanical recycling (compounding) combined with high-value-added technologies for a certain period. Starting at the end of this year, SK chemicals plans to begin full-scale production of recycled materials using chemical recycling technology.

The recycled PET materials produced by SK chemicals will be used by REVELOP and Kakao to manufacture a variety of end products such as clothing, desks, and banners, which will then be distributed and sold. In addition, Sejinplus is working to upcycle waste banners into automotive interior materials and construction materials through physical processing methods.

Through this agreement, SK chemicals expects that collaboration between local communities and businesses will help significantly increase the current waste banner recycling rate, which stands at only 30%.

According to the Ministry of Environment, approximately 6,000 tons of waste banners are generated annually. However, about 70% of these waste banners are currently incinerated or sent to landfills. The volume of waste banners generated annually by the five local governments participating in this agreement alone amounts to approximately 1.95 million tons.

Although there have been previous attempts to recycle waste banners, most were one-off efforts that repurposed the material into items such as reusable shopping bags. However, these repurposed products were often eventually incinerated or landfilled, highlighting limitations in terms of sustaining a true circular resource system.

In contrast, chemically recycled materials based on depolymerization can be repeatedly recycled without any degradation in quality, unlike mechanically recycled materials. If the PET material produced through this process is used as a raw material for banners, it enables the realization of a complete circular system—referred to as a ‘closed loop’—where waste banners are turned back into new banners.

A representative from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety stated, “The results of this pilot project will be actively reflected in future policies to promote waste banner recycling. We plan to establish recycling guidelines at the central government level and expand successful cases nationwide based on performance analysis.” The official added, “In addition, we will work with relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Environment, to encourage the use of recycled products and discuss strategies for market expansion.”

SK chemicals plans to further accelerate the development and research of initiatives that enhance the sustainability of the circular economy, not only focusing on waste banners but also expanding to broader areas.

Kim Hyun-seok, Head of the Recycling Business Division at SK chemicals, stated, “Banners have long been used as a cost-effective and impactful promotional tool, but most are discarded after a single use, prompting various efforts to reduce related waste.” He added, “Through this agreement, we aim to play a key role in establishing a circular economy for banners, while continuing our efforts to build a circular recycling ecosystem across diverse sectors both domestically and internationally.”

Meanwhile, in 2023, SK chemicals invested approximately KRW 130 billion (USD 95.68 million) to establish SK Shantou and became the first in the world to commercialize production facilities for chemically recycled raw materials and products. In Korea, SK chemicals is also expanding its recycling-related production and research infrastructure by establishing facilities such as the Recycling Innovation Center within its Ulsan Plant site, which includes a pilot facility for chemically decomposing waste plastics to produce recycled raw materials (r-BHET).