(LEAD) LG Group to invest 15 tln won in 2010, up 28 pct

(ATTN: CORRECTS on year comparison in headline, lead; UPDATES throughout to clarify;
ADDS sales target for LGE in last para)
By Lee Youkyung

SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's LG Group plans to increase its
investments this year by 28 percent from a year earlier to 15 trillion won
(US$13.35 billion), with its electronics unit to receive the lion's share, the
group said Tuesday.
LG set its revenue target for this year at 135 trillion won, up 8 percent from
the previous year, the group said in a statement. Under its wing, LG has LG
Electronics Inc, LG Display Co., LG Chem Ltd. and LG Telecom Ltd.
The 15 trillion won investment includes 3.7 trillion won in research and
development, compared with 3 trillion won last year, the group said in the
statement.
"The record high investment is aimed at developing a future growth engine," it
said.
Under the investment plan, LG will spend a total of 10.8 trillion won on
electronics units including its subsidiary LG Electronics, the world's
third-largest maker of mobile handsets.
LG Electronics will channel the investment towards development of smartphones,
next generation mobile handsets, smart TVs and solar batteries, while LG Display
will expand its liquid-crystal-display panel plant and boost technology for
light-emitting-diodes and three-dimensional panels.
The group's 2010 investment plan also calls for LG Chem, the country's top
chemical producer, and LG Life Sciences Ltd. to use 2.3 trillion won in areas
including lithium-ion batteries for mobile devices.
LG Chem will place some outlays in future growth engines, including lithium-ion
batteries for electric-powered vehicles and liquid-crystal-display (LCD) glass,
it added.
The group also said it will funnel 1.9 trillion won to its telecommunications and
service areas, including fourth-generation mobile technology and overseas energy
resources.
The 135 trillion won revenue target is the largest in the group's history, with
LG Electronics, LG's flagship unit, aiming to reach sales of 59 trillion won this
year, according to the group.
ylee@yna.co.kr
(END)

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