LG Enhances Environmental Leadership With Third Generation Linear Compressor

Seoul, Korea. - LG Electronics (LG), a pioneer and leader in home appliance convergence, today launched its third generation linear compressor, furthering its global leadership in environmentally-friendly components and products, and setting another global standard in this area.

The compressor, like an automobile’s engine, is one of the most important components in a refrigerator’s operation, underlying the entire cooling system. The compressor accounts for about 80 percent of a refrigerator’s total energy consumption. A home ice bar equipped 725-liter refrigerator with LG’s third generation linear compressor uses just 35.9 Kwh per month. This makes it the most energy efficient refrigerator in its class, even besting the same size model with LG’s second generation linear compressor by 3.6 Kwh. This efficiency not only lowers electric bills, but also carbon emissions, which average 0.5kg per kilowatt hour.

“LG is committed to the environment and energy savings. This next generation of linear compressors not only means that we are leading the industry, it also means that we are fully prepared for any upcoming environmental regulations,” said Young-ha Lee, President and CEO of LG Electronics Home Appliance Company. “LG has been an incomparable leader in linear compressor technology, and this is a strong catalyst to help us achieve our goal of becoming a global top refrigerator maker.”

While conventional reciprocating compressors turn the motor’s rotational movement into the piston’s linear movement to compress refrigerant, in LG’s linear compressors, the motor directly connected to the piston moves along a linear track to compress refrigerant, minimizing energy loss during conversion and lowering energy use by up to 30 percent.

LG, the unrivalled leader in this innovative linear technology, developed the first Korean-made compressor in 1973 and the first market-ready linear compressor in 2001. It came out with an enhanced second generation linear compressor in 2006. Since then, LG has invested KRW 12 billion to develop more advanced, next generation technological standard in compressors as well as refrigerators. LG currently owns more than 700 patents both domestically and internationally, and will form a task force to develop more innovative technology in this area.

LG’s third generation linear compressor will debut in the company’s side-by-side refrigerators in Korea starting from April of this year and expand to other markets including Europe and North America. LG also plans to provide the compressor to other refrigerator makers around the world. LG plans to see use of third generation linear compressors soar more than 10-fold to 50 percent by 2015.

As environmental regulations tighten globally, consumers are also demanding products with greater efficiency and lower energy consumption. It is expected that developed markets including Europe, North America and Korea will see the market for more eco-friendly appliances expand.

Earlier this year, LG announced its worldwide Life’s Good When It’s Green initiative to reinforce its commitment to the environment and energy savings. The initiative focuses on sustainability through Eco-Design and Eco-Products, reduction of hazardous materials, responsible electronics recycling and addressing global climate change. LG is taking proactive steps to address global climate change, pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout the entire lifespan of its products. LG intends to reduce greenhouse gases emitted over the lifetime of its products by 30 megatons by 2020, from raw materials, components such as linear compressors, logistics, product use and disposal. In addition, LG is trying to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in manufacturing by 150 kilotons per year by 2020.