December 15, 2025 [Reuters]- South Korean petrochemical company DL Chemical said on Monday that Yeochun NCC Co.’s No. 1 plant, which has an annual capacity of 900,000 metric tons, should be shut down under a restructuring plan, according to an emailed statement.

Yeochun NCC Co (YNCC), the country’s third-largest ethylene producer, is a joint venture between DL Chemical and Hanwha Solutions .

DL Chemical said the proposal came in response to the government’s push for local petrochemical companies to submit restructuring plans by the end of this year to resolve oversupply and improve their finances.

The Korea Economic Daily reported on Sunday that Hanwha and DL Chemical had agreed to close YNCC’s No. 3 plant, which has a capacity of 470,000 tons, citing anonymous industry and government sources.

DL Chemical said in Monday’s statement that it was not proposing shutting down the No. 3 plant at this time.

YNCC’s No. 3 cracker has already been shut temporarily since August to improve the company’s finances, after it reported losses for three straight years through 2024.

DL Chemical’s proposal to shut the No.1 plant had not been agreed to by its joint venture partner and was one of several potential scenarios for restructuring YNCC, a spokesperson for Hanwha Solutions said in a text message.

Hanwha Solutions was still in active talks with DL Chemical to boost YNCC’s competitiveness, it said.

YNCC declined to comment on The Korea Economic Daily report.