South Korea's LG Chem shuts down No. 2 ethylene plant at Yeosu complex (updated)

LG Chem

23/03/2026 08:50

Recasts with details from company filing

By Heejin Kim and Kyu-seok Shim

SEOUL, March 23 (Reuters) - South Korea's LG Chem 051910.KS has temporarily shut down the No. 2 naphtha cracker at its Yeosu complex due to disruptions in supplies linked to the war in Iran, the company said in a regulatory filing on Monday.

LG Chem said the temporary halt was caused by difficulties in securing naphtha feedstock for its naphtha cracking centre (NCC), adding it would focus on stabilising its supply chain and restart production promptly once raw material supplies normalise.

The company did not give a timeline for resuming operations, saying it would disclose the date once it is decided.

The plant is located in the Yeosu industrial complex and has an annual capacity of 800,000 metric tons.

    Ethylene, a key petrochemical material produced at NCCs, is widely used to make plastics such as polyethylene as well as synthetic fibres, solvents and other chemical products used in packaging, construction and automotive manufacturing.

 (Reporting by Heejin Kim and Kyu-seok Shim; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Eileen Soreng)

 ((Heejin.Kim@thomsonreuters.com;))