LG Chem, Korea's leading chemicals firm, said Sunday it will focus on three pillars of its business -- energy, water and biotechnology -- under its new growth strategy.

Under the plan, LG Chem said it will expand expenditures on research and development while speeding up mergers and acquisitions with potential partners that have core technologies of those three industries. 

The company added that it will especially emphasize energy, adding it plans to develop environmentally-friendly components for car batteries.

"The market for eco-friendly cars is expected to grow on the back of regulatory policies on gas emissions and power efficiencies, rather than just oil prices," Park Jin-soo, vice chairman of the company, said in a news conference Friday.

"Regardless of the oil price, the electric car market is expected to kick off faster than expected. Thus, we are preparing various solutions including the production capabilities," he added.

LG Chem said it is also interested in tapping deeper into biotechnologies that involve making chemical goods from corn or beans, or even creating new pharmaceutical solutions. (Yonhap)