This March 2020 file photo shows a production facility of SKC in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province. Korea Times file

SKC, a film and chemical materials company of South Korea's conglomerate SK Group, has said it is considering selling its polyester (PET) film business in what could be an attempt to bolster its drive for battery materials and other eco-friendly sectors.

The proposed selling of the PET film business is one of the various options being discussed with Hahn Company, a Seoul-based private equity fund, though no decision has been made yet on holding a board meeting, SKC said in a regulatory filing Thursday.

Still, people familiar with the matter said SKC could hold a board meeting as early as next week to finalize the decision and plans to sign the deal with the private equity fund for approximately 1.6 trillion won ($1.28 billion).

An SKC official declined to comment.

The sale, if confirmed, would mark a major breakaway from the flagship business that SKC is rooted in. SKC started off as South Korea's first PET film developer in 1977, becoming the fourth in the world in 1980 to have developed colored videotape after the United States, Germany and Japan.

It has expanded its businesses to various types of films, from optical, packaging and display to semiconductors and solar cells.

But the potential sale of the PET film division has been speculated for months, as SKC is reorganizing its businesses to focus more on battery components and other advanced materials, especially the copper foil used in lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.

SKC acquired KCFT, a copper foil manufacturer, from KKR & Co. in 2019 and has now renamed the company SK Nexilis as its wholly owned subsidiary.

SKC is predicted to use the proceeds from the sale to expand copper foil facilities. SKC said in November it will spend 900 billion won to build a battery copper foil factory in Poland, with an aim to produce 50,000 tons a year. (Yonhap)