2023-08-13 12:30:25
International
Enter2023.08.13 21:30 Edit2023.08.13 21:30
Interview with POSCO executives… “Nickel procured from Australia for the North American market, smelted in Korea” The Financial Times, a British daily, reported that POSCO is leading the movement to move production of battery materials from mainland China to Korea in order to receive subsidies under the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). FT) reported on the 13th (local time). In an interview with Gyeong-seop Lee, head of the secondary battery material business promotion team (executive director) of POSCO Holdings, FT said that POSCO is taking the lead in onshoring (domestic production) of battery materials targeting the rapidly growing US electric vehicle market.
In an interview at POSCO headquarters in Seoul, General Manager Lee said that POSCO is trying to build a material supply chain that meets IRA requirements that “nothing is produced or sourced in China.”
He added, “The nickel needed for the North American market will be procured from Australia, and the smelting process will be carried out at facilities in Korea.” With the implementation of the IRA, the United States is subsidizing only electric vehicles that have mined and processed more than a certain percentage of core minerals for batteries in the United States or in countries that have signed free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States.
Lee added, however, that Chinese companies would continue to play an important role in the supply chain because of their “lead” in areas such as nickel and graphite processing. “Complete de-China is very difficult and costly,” he added.
In June, POSCO Holdings and POSCO Future M announced that they had signed a joint venture agreement (JVA) with China’s CNGR (Zhongwei) for the production of nickel and precursors for secondary batteries worth US$1.2 billion. Earlier in May, Posco Future M and Huayou Cobalt of China signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly produce anode and cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries in Pohang.
China, which produces about 90% of the world’s rare earths, controls dozens of mineral supply chains, and South Korean battery companies such as LG Energy Solutions and Samsung SDI still rely on Chinese companies to procure and refine certain key minerals, the FT said. .
/yunhap news
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