• Joins the Solveathon idea competition hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, inviting ideas for supply chain development
• Aims to build a nationwide resource circulation infrastructure for waste banners by reviewing outstanding proposals for commercialization
   

SK Chemicals is seeking partners to build a circular economy for waste banners.

SK Chemicals (CEO Ahn Jae-hyun) announced on July 23 that it is participating in the 2026 Solveathon for Overcoming Regional Decline, an idea competition organized by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and is holding an open call for ideas on building a supply chain that connects the collection, consolidation, pre-processing, and resource recovery of waste banners. Submissions will be accepted until August 3.

The Solveathon is a program in which the government, businesses, and local communities work together to identify solutions to regional challenges and support their commercialization.

This open call was organized to develop collaborative solutions needed to establish a circular economy system based on waste banners generated in local communities, and to identify potential partners. A wide range of participants are eligible, including existing banner-related businesses and recycling companies, as well as social and solidarity economy organizations, startups, and institutions and associations. Participants can propose diverse ideas for supply chain development, such as establishing waste banner collection systems, operating regional hubs, developing pre-processing business models, and community-linked initiatives.

Outstanding ideas will receive the KCCI Chairman’s Award and a prize of KRW 1 million. Regardless of award outcomes, SK Chemicals plans to closely review all submitted proposals and explore business partnership opportunities in the future collection of waste banners and supply chain development for those that demonstrate commercial viability and feasibility.

Through this open call, SK Chemicals plans to secure a nationwide supply chain that connects the entire process from the collection and consolidation of waste banners to pre-processing and resource recovery, and to build a stable recovery and resource recovery infrastructure for waste banners that reflects the characteristics of each region, with the participation of local small and medium-sized enterprises and social and solidarity economy organizations.

The goal is to establish a system in which waste banners circulate continuously by using them as feedstock to produce SKYPET CR, the company’s recycled PET material, through its chemical recycling process, and then using that material to manufacture new banners.

Building a supply chain for waste banners is considered essential to expanding their resource circulation. According to the Ministry of Environment, approximately 6,000 tons of waste banners are generated in Korea each year, and about 70% of them are reportedly landfilled or incinerated. Although waste banners are made of polyester (PET), a recyclable material, most are not recovered as resources due to a lack of collection, pre-processing, and utilization systems.

Ahn Jae-hyun, CEO of SK Chemicals, said, “Building a circular economy model in which waste banners are turned back into banners is an undertaking that cannot be completed with the technology and solutions of a single company alone. We will work in close solidarity with local communities, competitive local enterprises, businesses with expertise in recycling, and social economy organizations to build sustainable resource circulation systems tailored to each local community.”

Meanwhile, SK Chemicals has built up its capabilities in this area by establishing a chemical recycling production base in Shantou, China, and by verifying and commercializing resource recovery technologies for textile-based waste, including waste banners.

In particular, SK Chemicals’ depolymerization-based chemical recycling technology can return waste banners to the feedstock level, enabling repeated recycling. It is regarded as a sustainable circular economy solution that can overcome the limitations of mechanical recycling, in which quality degrades during the process.

In addition, SK Chemicals has been expanding its cooperation with local governments to establish a stable collection and recycling system for waste banners, signing memorandums of understanding with the City of Gunsan as well as the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the cities of Sejong, Gangneung, Cheongju, Naju, Changwon, and Seoul.

[Photo caption: The official poster for the open call for ideas on building a circular economy supply chain for waste banners, part of the 2026 Solveathon for Overcoming Regional Decline in which SK Chemicals is participating]