LG publishes 2025 ESG report, shifts to independent board chair structure

LG Group announced Wednesday that it has published its 2025 ESG report, covering the conglomerate's sustainability performance and plans for the year ahead.

The report covers six entities: LG Group and its subsidiaries LG CNS and D&O, along with key affiliates LG Electronics, LG Chem and LG Uplus.

The report is organized around three pillars — compliance management, climate change and safety and health — and outlines LG's efforts to build a sustainable future. To provide timely information, the report also incorporates data from the first half of 2026 in some areas.

On compliance, LG replaced the board chairs of its 11 listed subsidiaries with independent directors as part of efforts to establish stronger corporate governance. LG Group itself followed suit: Koo Kwang-mo, who had served concurrently as both chief executive and board chair, stepped aside in March when independent director Park Jong-su was appointed chair. The move is intended to strengthen board independence, improve the objectivity of decision-making and enhance management transparency to protect the interests of all shareholders.

LG has also built a board-centered compliance governance framework since 2023, reinforcing the board's oversight role in compliance management. The board serves as the top supervisory body, with a focused mandate to manage key compliance risks.

The ESG Committee, the chief executive and the compliance officer — each acting under authority delegated by the board — play active roles in operating and monitoring the compliance system, boosting the practical effectiveness of the group's compliance management.

On climate change, LG is implementing a roadmap to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 34 percent from 2018 levels by 2030, by 52 percent by 2040, and by 100 percent — reaching net zero — by 2050. The group plans to continuously refine the roadmap to reflect changes in the internal and external environment as well as technological advances and emissions-reduction progress across its affiliates.

On safety and health, LG has operated LG SHEC (Safety Health Environment Conference), its group-wide safety and environment event, since 2023 to raise awareness and embed a safety culture across the organization. The conference features exhibitions of the latest AI-integrated safety and environment technologies, allowing safety officers to benchmark practices and build practical expertise.

Meanwhile, LG has proactively applied domestic sustainability disclosure standards set by the Korea Sustainability Standards Board (KSSB) in its ESG reports since 2024, ahead of mandatory ESG disclosure requirements taking effect in 2028. Applying KSSB standards across all three areas — compliance management, climate change and safety and health — is considered an unusual step even among major South Korean conglomerates.