POSCO Group has commenced operations of South Korea’s first lithium plant. The group is accelerating the establishment of a supply chain and the domestic production of core materials for its secondary battery business, a key driver of its new growth.
On Nov. 29, POSCO Group announced the completion of both the lithium hydroxide plant of POSCO Pilbara Lithium Solution in the Yulchon Industrial Complex in South Jeolla Province and the high-efficiency non-oriented electrical steel sheet (Hyper NO) plant within POSCO Gwangyang Steelworks.
With the completion of this lithium hydroxide plant, POSCO Group begins the first commercial production of key raw materials for the secondary battery material business in South Korea.
POSCO Pilbara Lithium Solution aims to establish a production system capable of producing 43,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year, enough for approximately 1 million electric vehicles, by next year. The first plant, completed today, has an annual production capacity of 21,500 tons, and a second plant of the same size is planned to be completed next year.
Especially noteworthy is POSCO Group’s success in domesticating lithium extraction technology, significantly contributing to the stabilization of the domestic secondary battery material supply chain, which previously relied on imports.
Moreover, with the entire production process, from securing raw materials in Australia to processing in South Korea, taking place within countries that have Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with the United States, POSCO Group can anticipate benefits from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Looking forward, POSCO Group plans to successfully enter the market based on its already secured mines and salt lakes, expanding its business scope by utilizing non-traditional lithium resources.
By 2030, the group aims to secure a lithium production capacity of 423,000 tons both domestically and internationally, aspiring to become a global top 3 lithium company.
Additionally, by 2030, POSCO Group plans to complete the entire secondary battery material value chain by securing production capacities of 240,000 tons of nickel, 70,000 tons from recycling, 1 million tons of cathode materials, 370,000 tons of anode materials, and 9,400 tons of next-generation materials.