ES division head Lee Jae-sung presents mid- to long-term carbon neutrality road map for residential spaces at national green transition forum

LG Electronics' Therma V heat pump boiler. [LG Electronics]
LG Electronics' Therma V heat pump boiler. [LG Electronics]

LG Electronics said Wednesday it plans to expand heat pump applications beyond public rental housing to newly built and existing apartment complexes across South Korea.

Lee Jae-sung, president and head of LG Electronics' Eco Solution (ES) division, presented a mid- to long-term road map for achieving carbon neutrality in residential spaces at the Korea Green Transformation (K-GX) strategy national forum, held Wednesday at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jung-gu, Seoul.

LG Electronics put forward its energy-independent modular housing concept, "Smart Cottage," as a flagship model for residential green transformation. The concept integrates heat pumps, home appliances, a home energy management system, ESS and solar power generation into a single platform.

Smart Cottage is designed to raise energy efficiency in residential spaces by optimizing energy production and consumption, reducing carbon emissions and improving energy self-sufficiency.

LG Electronics plans to participate in projects to develop energy-independent residential complexes within distributed energy special zones, using heat pumps and Smart Cottage as the foundation.

The company also plans to expand its domestic heat pump production base centered on its Changwon factory and, over the long term, to standardize heat pump conversion and optimal energy management across different housing types. The goal is to spread the net-zero, energy-independent residential complex model by widening heat pump adoption.

LG Electronics sees the energy-independent housing model as contributing not only to carbon neutrality but also to new industry growth and broader energy welfare.

The company envisions supporting workers transitioning out of the conventional boiler industry while expanding heat pump distribution in energy-vulnerable areas such as rural and fishing communities to lower energy costs for residents.

LG Electronics also plans to leverage the technology and business models it has built domestically to accelerate its push into global markets.

LG Electronics entered the domestic heat pump system boiler business in 2011 and has since led South Korea's residential heating electrification market, becoming the first domestic manufacturer to supply an all-in-one residential heat pump system boiler in 2018.

Its flagship product, the LG Therma V heat pump boiler, uses ambient air to generate thermal energy at up to four to five times the level of electricity consumed, making it a high-efficiency system.

LG Electronics recently secured the largest share of units under the government's heating electrification policy initiative, the 2026 Jeju Heat Pump Distribution Project, taking responsibility for 877 of the total 2,460 households covered by the program.

The company is also extending heat pump applications beyond single-family homes into apartment complexes. Working with the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, Jeju Development Corp. and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, LG Electronics is conducting a pilot project to electrify heating, cooling and hot water supply in multi-unit housing — the first in South Korea to apply heat pumps to an apartment complex with residents living in it.


joze@heraldcorp.com