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OCI to supply semiconductor phosphoric acid to SK hynixOCI is strengthening its position as a semiconductor materials company. - OCI became the first domestic semiconductor materials company to supply semiconductor phosphoric acid to SK hynix.- The company holds the largest market share and supplies semiconductor phosphoric acid to all semiconductor manufacturers in Korea including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.- OCI is strengthening its semiconductor materials business, such as phosphoric acid and hydrogen peroxide for semiconductors, in response to the growing semiconductor market. - OCI President Yoo Shin Kim said, “We will strengthen our position as a competitive semiconductor materials manufacturer.”OCI, a global leading advanced materials company, was selected as the first Korean phosphoric acid manufacturer to supply phosphoric acid to SK hynix Inc. With this order from SK hynix, OCI will further consolidate its position as the largest supplier in the domestic semiconductor phosphoric acid market and strengthen its standing as a leading semiconductor materials manufacturers.OCI received approval from SK hynix to supply semiconductor phosphoric acid after a rigorous qualification process, and held a ceremony to celebrate the shipment of the first products at its Gunsan plant on August 21.The semiconductor phosphoric acid supplied by OCI to SK hynix is one of the crucial materials in semiconductor manufacturing, and is used in the process of etching semiconductor wafers. OCI’s semiconductor phosphoric acid is a basic material used in all semiconductor processes, including DRAM, NAND flash memory and foundry production, and its demand expected to increase steadily in line with HBM’s growth and the recovery of the semiconductor business.Since it entered the semiconductor phosphoric acid business in 2007, OCI has reached an annual production capacity of 25,000 tons and has been stably supplying phosphoric acid to major domestic semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics Co., SK keyfoundry Inc., and DB HiTek Co., for 17 years. It maintains the largest market share in the semiconductor phosphoric acid market. By adding SK hynix as a new customer, OCI has become the only company supplying phosphoric acid to all major domestic semiconductor manufacturers in Korea.OCI plans to gradually expand its semiconductor phosphoric acid production capacity along with the growing demand from existing and new customers and contribute to the local production of semiconductor materials and stabilization of their supply chains.The company expects to increase sales of hydrogen peroxide, which is essential for the cleaning processes of semiconductor fabrication.OCI has produced hydrogen peroxide since 1979, with an annual capacity of 75,000 tons and has honed a competitive edge through its long history and technology. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix plan to resume their production line expansions with the recovery of the semiconductor business this year, and demand for electronic-grade hydrogen peroxide is expected to continue to increase accordingly.In addition, OCI supplies semiconductor hydrogen peroxide to Kioxia Corp, a Japanese NAND flash memory manufacturer. Last July, Kioxia completed the construction of a new wafer fabrication plant in Iwate Prefecture with a monthly capacity of 25,000 wafers, raising the prospect of additional orders for OCI.Recently, OCI decided to acquire a stake in P&O Chemical Co., which will increase its annual hydrogen peroxide production capacity by 50,000 tons, allowing it to proactively respond to the demand driven by the expanding production lines of customers.OCI President Yoo Shin Kim said, “It is very encouraging that OCI has become the first domestic manufacturer to supply semiconductor phosphoric acid to SK hynix after passing the qualification process, based on our technology. In the future, OCI will strengthen its position as a semiconductor materials company by expanding production and boosting competitiveness to meet the growing demand for semiconductors.” (End) 

OCI Receives Gold Medal in 2024 EcoVadis Sustainability Assessment - OCI received the Gold Medal awarded to the top 5% by EcoVadis, a major global ESG assessment agency. - Received high scores in the categories of environment, labor and human rights, with favorable scores in all categories. - OCI set tasks for each category as part of its mid- to long-term ESG roadmap and systematically implemented ESG activities.- Selected by Sustinvest as the best ESG company in the first half of 2024, demonstrating its outstanding ESG management capabilities at home and abroad. OCI announced that it has been awarded a Gold Medal from EcoVadis, a global ESG rating agency, placing it in the top 5% and recognizing its strong ESG management capabilities.EcoVadis, founded in France in 2007, is the world’s largest reliable global sustainability rating agency. EcoVadis evaluates over 130,000 companies across 180 countries in four categories: Environment, Labor and Human Rights, Ethics, and Sustainable Procurement, and awards Platinum (top 1%), Gold (top 5%), Silver (top 15%) and Bronze (top 35%) medals. OCI received Gold Medal, which is awarded to the top 5% of all companies assessed. Compared to the previous year, OCI has improved its scores in overall areas, especially high scores in environment, and labor and human rights. Recently, the number of clients requesting global ESG ratings from their suppliers has increased sharply, and with this EcoVadis rating, OCI is expected to strengthen its business capabilities by pre-emptively responding to such a trend of stricter global ESG regulations.OCI has established a mid- to long-term ESG roadmap to strengthen ESG management and set tasks in each of the environmental, social and governance categories, and systematically implemented ESG activities.In the environmental area, the company has established a greenhouse gas emissions management system aligned with global regulation of carbon emissions. It also set a target to increase its water reuse rate by more than 10% by 2030 compared with 2019, aiming to reinforce the monitoring of water resource usage at its sites. In addition, for producing eco-friendly carbon black using recycled fuel oil from plastic waste, OCI received the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) Plus, an international eco-friendly product certification, in 2023, and plans to increase certifications by using eco-friendly raw materials. In the area of labor and human rights, the company conducted human rights impact assessments at all sites in April of this year, identified human rights risks and incorporated the results into its corporate policies to strengthen human rights management. OCI also recently received the top rating, AA, in an ESG assessment conducted by Sustinvest, a domestic ESG rating agency. OCI was selected by Sustinvest as one of the 100 Best ESG Companies among listed Korean companies on a bi-annual basis, demonstrating its excellent sustainable management capabilities both domestically and internationally. OCI CEO YooShin Kim said, “With the Gold Medal from EcoVadis, we expect to actively meet the demands of our key stakeholders and maintain global market competitiveness. In the future, OCI will fulfill its corporate social responsibility, further strengthen ESG management, and pursue sustainable growth to realize its vision of becoming a global leading advanced materials company.”  (end)

OCI Acquires all of the shares in P&O Chemical, a Joint Venture with POSCO Future M, Accelerating its Expansion into the Semiconductor and Rechargeable Battery Materials Businesses - OCI decided to acquire all of the shares in P&O Chemical, a joint venture with POSCO Future M.- OCI aims to normalize the performance and achieve mid- to long-term growth of P&O Chemical through synergies with its existing businesses.- Expects to strengthen the competitiveness of the semiconductor and rechargeable battery materials businesses and diversify its portfolio.- CEO YooShin Kim said, “This lays the foundation to grow into a global advanced materials company by creating various synergies and exploring business opportunities.” OCI announced that its Board of Directors approved the acquisition of all shares in P&O Chemical, a joint venture with POSCO Future M, at its regular meeting on August 26. Following the approval of the Board of Directors, OCI will enter into a share purchase agreement with POSCO Future M to acquire POSCO Future M’s stake in P&O Chemical for KRW 53.7 billion. After the purchase agreement, P&O Chemical will become a subsidiary of OCI through a merger filing.P&O Chemical is a joint venture established by OCI and POSCO Future M in July 2020 to produce high value-added materials from byproducts of steelmaking, with OCI holding 49% of the shares and POSCO Future M holding 51%. With a hydrogen peroxide production plant with an annual capacity of 50,000 metric tons completed in 2022, P&O Chemical is producing high-purity electronic grade hydrogen peroxide used in semiconductor fabrication processes. A plant for the production of high-softening-point pitch, a coating material for anode materials of rechargeable batteries, was completed in the second half of 2023 and is currently in trial operation. P&O Chemical’s performance is still weak because it is in the early stage of business. However, based on OCI’s long-standing technology and production capabilities and the creation of synergies between businesses, P&O Chemical plans to normalize its business operations and achieve mid- to long-term growth. In particular, It is expected that product quality and cost competitiveness will improve by establishing a close linkage with the Iksan plant, which produces high-purity hydrogen peroxide. Meanwhile, high-softening-point pitch is an essential coating material of the anode materials that enhances both stability and efficiency of rechargeable batteries, and P&O Chemical plans to start its mass production from 2025. To address the long-term growth of global anode material market, the company will focus on maximizing profitability by acquiring additional customers. With the acquisition of P&O Chemical, OCI aims to strengthen the competitiveness of its semiconductor and rechargeable battery materials businesses and expand a portfolio of advanced materials businesses. With the recent recovery of the semiconductor business, semiconductor chip makers, including Samsung Electronics, are planning to increase their production capacity, which will lead to increased demand for high-purity hydrogen peroxide. OCI plans to proactively prepare for increased customer demand with the acquisition of P&O Chemical. In addition, OCI succeeded in commercialization of high-softening-point-pitch for the first time in Korea by utilizing its proprietary technology, and through the partnership between OCI and P&O Chemical, OCI will enhance product competitiveness and develop various high value-added products to accelerate the expansion of the rechargeable battery materials business.After the acquisition of P&O Chemical, OCI and POSCO Future M will maintain a close business relationship based on a long-standing partnership. OCI will secure a stable supply of byproducts of steelmaking, a core raw material from the POSCO Group, while P&O Chemical will supply high-softening-point pitch, a coating material for anode materials, to POSCO Future M, further creating synergy between OCI and POSCO Future M. OCI CEO YooShin Kim said, “With the acquisition of P&O Chemical, OCI will be expected to further expand the scope of its advanced materials sector such as semiconductor and rechargeable battery materials. In the future, OCI will actively generate synergies with P&O Chemical and explore business expansion opportunities in advanced materials to grow as a semiconductor and rechargeable battery materials company.” (end)