Next-generation Anode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries
POSCO Group has entered the silicon anode material business by acquiring a 100 percent stake in Tera Technos, a startup that specializes in silicon anode materials.
Tera Technos was established in 2017 by Tera Science, a Korean company with expertise in lithium-ion batteries. The startup's continuous production technology is said to be capable of increasing productivity three times compared to existing batch technology. It also developed a technology that can increase silicon content in anode materials by using nano-sized silicon particles.
Silicon anode materials are next-generation anode materials that can boost electric vehicle mileage and shorten charging time by quadrupling energy density compared to graphite anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.
The silicon anode material market is expected to grow by 39 percent every year by 2030. The content of silicon anode materials in lithium-ion batteries is currently less than 5 percent, but is expected to grow to more than 10 percent by 2025 and more than 25 percent by 2030.
POSCO Holdings plans to start expanding the production facilities of Tera Technos within this year and begin to sell silicon anode materials within the first half of 2024. It plans to expand its production capacity to tens of thousands of tons by 2030.
POSCO Group also produces needle cokes, a raw material for natural and artificial graphite anode materials. It has secured an annual production capacity of 70,000 tons of natural graphite anode materials through graphite mining investment. In 2021, it completed an 8,000-ton artificial graphite anode material factory for the first time in Korea. In this way, it has solidified its position in the global market in the anode material sector.