LG Electronics, together with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, South Gyeongsang Province, and the Korea Fisheries Resources Agency (FIRA), will create a sea forest using a functional material in waters off Goseong County, South Gyeongsang Province. It plans to verify marine ecosystem restoration effects by using its own material that releases minerals underwater to help seaweed grow.
On the 20th, at LG Smart Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, LG Electronics signed a "sea forest creation project MOU" with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, South Gyeongsang Province, and the Korea Fisheries Resources Agency (FIRA). Under the agreement, from 2026 to 2029, it will create a sea forest across about 1.5 square kilometers (㎢) in waters off Deokmyeong-ri, Goseong County, South Gyeongsang Province. It plans to apply the functional new material "LG Marine Balance" developed by LG Electronics and observe its effects on seaweed growth and the marine environment.
LG Marine Balance is a material that releases mineral ions when it comes into contact with water. It is designed to supply, at a constant amount and speed, the components needed for the growth of seaweed and halophytes. LG Electronics also developed a technology to control the mineral components, release volume, and release speed depending on the environment where the material is used. To reduce the rapid dispersion of minerals, the material can be formed into hard bead-like spheres or flat chips.
Earlier, LG Electronics signed separate agreements with Busan and Suncheon in South Jeolla Province and is demonstrating coastal and marine ecosystem restoration effects by applying LG Marine Balance to about 1,500㎡ of the Nakdong River estuary salt marsh and the Suncheon Bay tidal flat. Recently, it received a presidential citation at the "14th Sea Planting Day Commemorative Event" for its contribution to conserving fishery resources.
LG Electronics is also linking this project to the expansion of its glass powder–based functional materials business. The company has conducted related research since 1996 and has secured about 420 patents related to functional materials to date. Last year, it completed regulatory registrations for antimicrobials required to enter the U.S. and European markets.
It is also increasing production capacity. LG Electronics operates a functional materials production line with an annual capacity of about 4,500 tons (t) at LG Smart Park in Changwon. It recently added another production line with an annual capacity of about 2,000 t at its manufacturing subsidiary in Haiphong, Vietnam.
LG Electronics is expanding functional materials into a business-to-business (B2B) segment. Representative products include the antimicrobial and anti-mold material "LG PuroTec," which is added to plastics, paints, and rubber to reduce odor and contamination caused by microorganisms, and "LG Mineral Wash," an inorganic-based detergent raw material.
Attendees at the signing ceremony included Choi Seong-bong, head of the built-in and cooking solutions business unit at LG Electronics; Choi Hyeon-ho, director general for fisheries policy at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries; Park Il-ung, administrative vice governor of South Gyeongsang Province; and Kim Jong-deok, chair of the Korea Fisheries Resources Agency (FIRA). Choi Seong-bong, head of the built-in and cooking solutions business unit at LG Electronics, said, "We will continue to advance functional material technologies that contribute to environmental conservation and the response to the climate crisis, and expand them into B2B business opportunities."