● S-OIL completed the construction of the Technical Service & Development (TS&D) Center to drive future growth at the Magok Industrial Complex in Seoul.
- S-OIL TS&D Center was built on a total area of 36,700m2 with a project cost of 144.4 billion won.
● The company aims to bolster its R&D capability in new product and new energy areas as well as technology support.
S-OIL CEO Anwar A. Al-Hejazi on Nov. 23 held an inauguration ceremony for the TS&D Center at the Magok Industrial Complex in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, and unveiled plans to step up its technology development capability in future business areas to drive sustainable growth.
The S-OIL injected 144.4 billion won(1st phase 38.3 bil. won, 2nd phase 106.1 bil. won) in constructing the R&D building comprised of four aboveground floors and two underground floors on a total area of 36,700m2.
S-OIL TS&D Center is equipped with high-tech research facilities, offices, a lounge, an auditorium, and a PR hall. It will play a pivotal role in developing high-quality, high value-added petrochemical and lubricant products and developing technology in the low-carbon energy area together with the polymer research building and the lubricant research building, which were constructed in 2017. In addition, S-OIL plans to keep increasing research personnel to bolster its R&D capability.
S-OIL CEO Anwar A. Al-Hejazi said, “The TS&D Center will work to minimize the impact of our products on the environment and to enhance the safety of consumers amid tightening environmental regulations globally and growing consumer expectations of high-quality and green products and it will position itself as the cradle of creative technology development, which will initiate sustainable growth.
“I expect that the TS&D Center will play a critical role in achieving the world’s highest and best energy efficiency as the heart of the Shaheen Project, the symbol of Korea-Saudi economic cooperation,” Park Duk-ryul, Director General for Cross-Border Investment Policy at Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said, urging, “I hope that it will serve as an opportunity to bolster the core capability of the petrochemical industry, accelerate a green transition.”
The TS&D Center will take on a key function to enhance the company’s new technology capability in the olefine downstream field. Olefine products will be mass-produced, starting 2026, when the ongoing Shaheen Project is completed. The center will also be in charge of the development of a wide array of products, including HDPE and LLDPE, tailored to customer needs and technical support.
In addition, the center will not only conduct R&D on lubricants for conventional combustion engine vehicles but also will spearhead technology development for lubricants for electric and hydrogen vehicles and fluids that cool the temperatures of electric vehicle batteries, of which such markets are projected to grow at a rapid pace. It also plans to lay the foundation for technology development in new energy areas such as clean hydrogen, ammonia and biofuels that S-OIL is making a strategic push for.
As S-OIL successfully completed the construction of the TS&D Center in Seoul where it is easy to attract high-qualified personnel under the active support of its largest shareholder Saudi Aramco, the technology competitiveness of the Shaheen Project is expected to be stably secured. The Shaheen Project, which means falcon in Arabic, is S-OIL’s ambitious plan to expand the petrochemical business in a move to cement its status as a clean energy and chemical company. With its total investment estimated to reach 9.258 trillion won, the largest investment in Korea’s petrochemical history and also Aramco’s largest investment in Korea, the project is garnering keen attention from Korea and overseas as being the biggest feat in bilateral economic diplomacy between Korea and Saudi Arabia.
