[News Article] Posco breaks ground for W1.5t nickel and precursor plants
Posco breaks ground
for W1.5t nickel and precursor plants
By Hwang Joo-young,
The Korea Herald - South Korean steel giant Posco Group said Friday that it
held a ground-breaking ceremony for its new plants dedicated to nickel and
precursor production, as part of efforts to secure a stable supply chain for
secondary battery materials. For this project,
Posco partnered with CNGR, a Chinese company renowned for its global leadership
in precursor production. In January, Posco
Holdings and CNGR established Posco CNGR Nickel Solution, their 60:40 joint
venture specializing in nickel refining. Additionally, Posco Future M and CNGR
formed C&P New Material Technology, specializing in precursor production,
with a 20:80 investment ratio, during the same period. The nickel refining
plant will process nickel matte supplied by CNGR to produce nickel with
approximately 99.9 percent purity. The plant's annual production capacity is
estimated to be 50,000 metric tons, sufficient for around 1.2 million electric
vehicles. Meanwhile, the
precursor plant will have an annual production capacity of 110,000 tons,
utilizing the high-purity nickel from Posco CNGR Nickel Solution. In addition,
Posco Future M will use these precursors to manufacture cathode materials. With a total
investment of 1.5 trillion won ($1.09 billion), these two plants are set to
commence production in 2026. Posco explained that
the decision to build these new plants aims to strengthen its business
competitiveness by increasing the localization of nickel and precursors, two
crucial materials for electric vehicles that are experiencing increasing demand
but are currently highly dependent on imports. The ground-breaking
ceremony was held Friday in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, and was attended
by Pohang Mayor Lee Kang-deok, Kim Jun-hyung, head of secondary battery
materials at Posco Holdings, Yoo Byung-ok, CEO of Posco Future M, Wu Xiaoge,
vice president of CNGR and around 300 other officials. “Posco Group and
CNGR will leverage their business expertise and technological capabilities to
establish a stable supply chain for secondary battery materials and enhance
synergies between their businesses,” Kim said during the ceremony. Posco said it will
further invest in securing stable supplies of secondary battery materials,
including nickel and lithium, as well as anode and cathode materials,
recycling, and other next-generation materials. Source: https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20240531050590
2024.06.04