POSCO Chemical completes world's largest cathode materials plant

POSCO Chemical will soon launch operations at its newly completed factory for cathode materials, the biggest of its kind in the world with an annual output capacity of 90,000 tons.

The company on Thursday held a completion ceremony at the plant in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, with CEO Min Kyung-zoon, POSCO Engineering & Construction CEO Han Sung-hee and Gwangyang Mayor Jeong In-hwa in attendance.

With its new plant ready to go online, POSCO Chemical has raised its production capacity for cathode materials from 30,000 tons to 90,000 per year, the world's highest for a single facility. The company can now manufacture batteries for a million high-performance electric vehicles (EVs).

POSCO Chemical's annual output capacity for such materials will reach 105,000 tons including production from its plant in Gumi, South Gyeongsang Province (10,000 tons), and that in Tongxiang in China's Zhejiang province (5,000).

The Gwangyang plant will mainly churn out cathode materials of high-nickel NCMA (nickel, cobalt, manganese, aluminum) and NCM (nickel, cobalt, manganese) used in cutting-edge EV batteries for supply to battery and finished car companies worldwide. High-nickel cathode material has a high proportion of nickel to boost battery capacity.

In addition, the company plans a diverse product lineup featuring high-nickel single-particle, NCA (nickel, cobalt, aluminum) and energy storage system cathode materials.

POSCO Chemical has set a goal of further bolstering its cathode material output to 340,000 tons by 2025 and 610,000 tons by 2030 by building plants in Pohang, South Gyeongsang Province, China and Canada.

Write to Seo-Woo Jang at suwu@hankyung.com