Construction site of a demonstration plant for lithium extraction in Hombre Muerto Salt Lake, Argentina. (image: POSCO)
SEOUL, June 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s top steelmaker POSCO Holdings Inc. is set to construct the nation’s inaugural plant that utilizes lithium carbonate for the production of secondary battery materials.
The company announced on Tuesday that it held a groundbreaking ceremony for a lithium hydroxide plant at the Yulchon Industrial Complex in Gwangyang, which is located 420 kilometers south of Seoul.
With an annual capacity of 25,000 tons, the new facility is expected to be completed by 2025, requiring an investment of approximately 575 billion won (US$451 million).
POSCO Holdings’ wholly-owned subsidiary, POSCO Lithium Solution, will oversee fundraising, construction, and operation of the plant.
The lithium hydroxide plant is part of the second phase of POSCO Holdings’ investment in Argentinean lithium brine, as announced in October of last year.
The company intends to make further investments to augment lithium production from Argentinean salt flats, aiming to reach a volume of 100,000 tons by 2028.
This initiative marks the beginning of POSCO Holdings’ plan to establish a battery material complex within the Yulchon Industrial Complex, thereby transforming it into a prominent production hub for battery materials.
Additionally, it is currently in the process of constructing a spodumene lithium ore factory for POSCO-Pilbara Lithium Solution within the same industrial complex.
POSCO Future M Co., a chemical subsidiary of POSCO Holdings, operates an electrode material factory, while POSCO HY Clean Metal Co., a joint venture set up between POSCO and Chinese Huayou Cobalt Co., manages a factory focused on recycling used batteries.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
