Saturday, May 11th, 2013
SEOUL, KOREA - SK Innovation said on May 9 that it will split SK Energy, its 100-percent subsidiary, into three units including SK Energy, SK Incheon Petrochemical, and SK Trading International. The latter two units will be established as separate companies whose 100-percent shares are to be held by the parent company as of July 1 this year.
Once the spinoff is completed, SK Incheon Petrochemical will focus on the production of paraxylene, a chemical used on a large scale for the manufacture of terephthalic acid for polyester. SK Trading, meanwhile, will engage in export and import of petrochemical products and crude oil.
SK Innovation, a de facto holding company of oil refining businesses within SK Group, will have a total of five subsidiaries, including SK Energy, SK Chem, and SK Lubricants, under its wings.
An SK Innovation official said, "The latest spinoff was intended to respond to rapidly changing business environment while strengthening our fundamental competitive advantage. Even after separation, the newly created firms will keep contributing to the growth of SK Energy in the areas of management strategy sharing and synergies."