100 Stories1974 Tongsuh Petrochemical, Korea

The memorable phrase, “Don't depend on oil,” was used when acrylonitrile (AN) was featured in a commercial in the “Creating for Tomorrow” advertising campaign. AN is a raw material for resins used mainly in acrylic fibers and parts for automobiles and electrical products.

In 1974, Asahi Kasei took a stake in Korea's Tongsuh Petrochemical Corporation, Ltd. which enabled the company to manufacture AN in Korea. The background to this decision was that while sales of acrylic fiber were strong in Korea at the time, there was concern about the supply of AN, the raw material for acrylic fiber. Asahi Kasei had been in an acrylic fiber manufacturing partnership with Korea’s Hanil Synthetic Fiber for some time, so Asahi Kasei took a stake in Tongsuh Petrochemical, a joint venture between Hanil Synthetic Fibers and U.S.-based Skelly Oil, by acquiring Skelly’s shares. Asahi Kasei then help to establish an integrated production system for acrylic fiber in Korea to increase production.

Lee Gyun-yeol, president of Tongsuh Petrochemical, recalled the history of the joint venture with Asahi Kasei, saying, “The history of Tongsuh Petrochemical starts in 1972, when our No. 1 AN plant started operation. It started with the purchase of propylene from Asahi Kasei. In 1998, Asahi Kasei acquired 100% of our shares, so as a member of Asahi Kasei, we decided to expand our business from the domestic sales system in Korea to the global market.

This comment was part of the celebration of AN's 40th anniversary in 2003, when Tongsuh Petrochemical was also preparing for its 35th anniversary the following year.

A major turning point for AN, the mainstay of Tongsuh Petrochemical, came in 2007. A proof of concept of the world's first technology to produce AN directly from propane, aptly termed “propane-based acrylonitrile,” successful, and commercial operation began at Tongsuh Petrochemical. The Asahi Kasei Group positioned AN as a major strategic business in its mid-term business plan “Growth Action-2010,” and decided to aggressively expand in the global market, especially in Asia, where a large growth in demand was anticipated.

Since 2008, Tongsuh Petrochemical has been holding the “Kimjang Kimchi Festival” as a way to give back to the local community. In late November to early December each year, Tongsuh Petrochemical employees, their families, and volunteers work together to make kimchi, which is then shared with local residents.

On that day every year, everyone, regardless of age or position, stands side by side with the volunteers to make kimchi. The sense of togetherness, where everyone is a part of the family, is a special experience that can only be experienced at this site, and it is an opportunity to show the importance of community ties to a generation that is unfamiliar with the past.

In 2011, Tongsuh Petrochemical began construction of the world's largest acrylonitrile monomer plant, which is used as a raw material for synthetic resins and synthetic fibers. In response, Mr. Heo, President of Tongsuh Petrochemical, said, “By 2013, when the new plant goes on line, we will enter the era of 1 trillion won in sales and be reborn as a leading AN company with the world's highest per capita productivity through our “economy of scale.”

Former president Taketsugu Fujiwara also stated, “I am deeply moved by the fact that Asahi Kasei has become a successful company after overcoming difficulties since taking over Tongsuh Petrochemical in 1998. AN Plant 4 will play a major role in Asahi Kasei's rapid expansion into the global market.

In 2013, the company expanded the capacity of Plant 4, its refining plant processing acetonitrile, a byproduct of AN production, in 2019, as well as Plant 3 in 2020, making it the backbone of its AN business, both in name and in reality.