1st Stage of 2nd Plant Completed
POSCO Chemical is set to ramp up its production of anode materials, a key material for rechargeable batteries.
POSCO Chemical announced on Oct. 27 that it has expanded its anode material production capacity by 20,000 tons a year by completing the first stage construction of its second anode material plant.
The completed facilities will begin production in November after a trial run, boosting POSCO Chemical’s production capacity to 44,000 tons a year.
POSCO Chemical has been building the second anode material factory in the Sejong Advanced Industrial Complex in Sejong City since November last year. The plant size is 106,086 square meters, which equals 13 football fields combined.
When completed in 2022, the plant will have a production capacity of 50,000 tons a year, increasing POSCO Chemical’s total production capacity to 74,000 tons, including the 24,000 tons of the first plant. This volume is enough to produce batteries for about 1.23 million 60-MW electric vehicles.
POSCO Chemical has put forward a plan to grow into a comprehensive producer of anode materials as part of its efforts to diversify its product portfolio. The company has developed an anode material that is made of natural graphite but performs like synthetic graphite. The company’s new anode material can significantly lower production costs as it uses natural graphite, but it retains the long life and high-speed charging characteristics of artificial graphite. POSCO Chemical will gradually increase its production capacity for the new anode material to 30,000 tons annually.
POSCO Chemical will also promote production of artificial graphite anode materials as demand for artificial graphite anode materials will increase with the growth of the electric vehicle industry. The company says it has already gained a competitive edge as it has secured not only raw materials for needle coke, which is supplied by its subsidiary PMC Tech, but manufacturing technology through production of natural graphite anode materials.