Lee Seung-jun, head of Orion, said the company would strengthen product and sales competitiveness and expand investment in production infrastructure.
At the regular shareholders meeting held at 9 a.m. on the 26th at the company headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Lee said, "Even amid last year's difficult business environment, on a consolidation basis we once again set all-time records, with sales of 3.3324 trillion won and operating profit of 558.2 billion won."
Lee assessed it as "an even more meaningful result, given that we achieved growth despite a continued challenging business environment of rising materials and supplies prices, high oil prices, and a strong dollar, and despite the absence of the Lunar New Year and Tet holiday effects, the peak seasons in China and Vietnam."
Lee added, "We posted strong growth in emerging markets such as Russia and India, and as exports expanded into new markets including the United States, Europe, and Africa, the global business drove groupwide earnings growth," and said, "Through expense reductions, we were also able to continue solid, quality growth."
Lee said, "Global corporations Orion is at an important turning point where it can widen the gap with competitors," and presented this year's core tasks as ▲ strengthening product competitiveness ▲ strengthening sales competitiveness ▲ investing in production infrastructure for future growth.
Orion will push to build the third Hanoi plant and the fourth Ho Chi Minh plant in Vietnam to step up its drive into the Southeast Asian market. In the Russian market, the company began construction in Jan. on a new plant building in Tver with an investment of 240 billion won. Once the expansion is complete, annual production in Russia will double to the 750 billion won level. In India, sales growth reached 80% in Jan. and Feb. this year, leaving supply unable to keep up with demand, and the company plans to promptly expand production lines for Choco Pie and Custard.
Following the establishment of a joint venture with the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives last year, the company also said it would begin building a seasoned seaweed production plant starting this year.
Lee said, "When everyone says crisis, Orion has the underlying strength and experience to turn it into an opportunity for growth and overcome it," and added, "Based on unrivaled product strength and global business capabilities that competing corporations cannot match, we will create greater growth and higher corporate value."
On the day, Orion reappointed Vice Chairman Heo In-cheol as an inside director and appointed former Incheon Regional Tax Office Administrator Lee Hyun-kyu, a former commissioner, as an outside director at the tax firm Arim.