KT&G CEO Kyung-man Bang participated in groundbreaking ceremonies for the South Korean tobacco company’s second and third factories in Surabaya, Indonesia, on April 26.
According to a company press release, Bang also visited KT&G’s Asia-Pacific headquarters in Jakarta during his trip, which was his first visit to an overseas business operation since assuming the top position at KT&G.
Spanning approximately 190,000 square meters, KT&G’s second and third factories in Indonesia are set to commence operations in 2026. The combined production capacity of the factories is projected to reach 21 billion cigarette sticks per year. KT&G plans to make Indonesia its largest global production base, with an annual production capacity (including existing factory capacity) of 35 billion cigarettes, and focus on global market expansion.
“We have been committed to delivering and accelerating our mid-[term] to long-term vision of becoming a global top-tier company by executing vigorous investment strategies and leading bold innovations,” said Bang during the ceremony.
“Indonesia serves as our primary global export hub, driving the expansion of our export business in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East markets. We will continue to develop the global production hub in Indonesia as a core growth engine for the company,” Bang added.
Last October, KT&G broke ground for a factory in Almaty Province, Kazakhstan, designed for exports across the Eurasian region. The following month, the company announced an expansion of its next-generation product capacity at its Daejeon factory.
To accelerate its global expansion, KT&G recently separated its Asia-Pacific headquarters and Eurasia headquarters from the company, establishing them into separate business entities.