Samsung materials arm, Samsung Petrochemical, has established a joint venture with carbon fiber specialist SGL Group that will aim to “develop new industrial and electronic applications with carbon composite materials for Samsung and the Korean market.” The company, which will operate under the name Samsung SGL Carbon Composite Materials, will be 50% owned by Samsung, which has long been criticized by the media for building plastic Android devices that feel cheap compared to rival products. According to the companies’ recent joint announcement, Samsung SGL Carbon Composite Materials will look to “provide a stable long-term supply of carbon fiber materials for Samsung and promote its use in various Samsung products and applications such as consumer electronics, medical devices and engineering applications.” The joint full press release follows below.

SGL Group and Samsung establish joint venture for Carbon Composite Materials

Strategic partnership with a Marketing & Sales JV for joint market development and distribution

Target: Introduction of new industrial and electronic applications for carbon composite materials

Wiesbaden, June 20, 2013. Today, SGL Group – The Carbon Company – and Samsung established a strategic partnership for carbon fiber composite materials with the foundation of a Marketing & Sales joint venture. The joint venture partners, Samsung Petrochemical and SGL Group, will each hold a 50% share. The primary objective of the cooperation is to develop new industrial and electronic applications with carbon composite materials for Samsung and the Korean market. The joint venture will operate under the name “Samsung SGL Carbon Composite Materials”.

The cooperation is expected to provide a stable long-term supply of carbon fiber materials for Samsung and promote its use in various Samsung products and applications such as consumer electronics, medical devices and engineering applications. Carbon fiber materials from SGL Group will be preferred by the Joint Venture. In the mid-term, the joint venture will aim for business expansion over the rest of Asia.

Juergen Koehler, member of the Board of Management of SGL Group: “In this partnership with Samsung, we combine our strengths and promote the use of carbon fiber materials in fast growing markets such as digital media. Carbon fiber materials play an increasingly important role in the material substitution process towards lighter products. Our joint venture underlines our strategy to enter new markets and develop innovative applications for our high-performance materials. We are proud to partner with Samsung.”

Yoosung Chung, President & CEO of Samsung Petrochemical: “Our long-term cooperation with SGL Group will ensure the exclusive supply of carbon fiber composite materials to Samsung. We selected SGL Group as partner due to the company’s unique expertise along the entire value chain from carbon fibers to CFRP components. Lightweight materials have become an important factor not only in industrial applications but also the consumer end markets such as digital media. This partnership will position Samsung as a leading player in the development and application of carbon fiber-based products.”

Both companies will combine their core competencies in this marketing & sales joint venture. SGL Group contributes its know-how in high performance carbon fiber-based materials. Samsung Petrochemical shares its experiences from particular application development with the Samsung’s affiliates, which is expected to allow the company to successfully meet the requirements of new industrial products and solutions.

Following the signing of the joint venture contract, which took place today in Seoul, the closing of the transaction is scheduled for July, pending regulatory approvals. Operations of the joint venture are scheduled to begin immediately thereafter. The joint venture will be headquartered in Ulsan/South Korea, at a Samsung Petrochemical facility. The office of the Marketing & Sales joint venture will be located in Seoul/South Korea.

The joint venture targets applications in the markets for electronic products, wind blades, pressure vessels, automotive and household appliances in the Far East. The Asian carbon fiber market is expected to be sharply growing in Korea and China by over 20% per year. Currently the Korean market focuses on prepreg and sportive goods. In the future though, the market is to be expanded to a wider range of industries like wind energy, electronics, automotives and others.