Optimal Site for Secondary Battery Specialized Complex, 'Pohang' Submits Designation Application to Ministry of Industry

Pohang City and Gyeongbuk Province Submit Designation Application and Development Plan

Yeongilman and Blue Valley National Industrial Complex Foster Cathode Material Production

Pohang City is participating in the national advanced strategic industry specialized complex contest to create an innovative ecosystem for the secondary battery industry and secure cutting-edge technology.

The city, together with Gyeongbuk Province, submitted the application for designation of the secondary battery specialized complex and the development plan to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 27th.

Pohang City Hall.

The government enacted the 'National Advanced Strategic Industry Special Act' in August last year to enhance national competitiveness and secure global leadership in advanced strategic industries such as secondary batteries, semiconductors, and displays, and is conducting a contest for the designation of 'National Advanced Strategic Industry Specialized Complexes' for industrial development and protection at the national level.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the competent authority, is receiving applications from local governments nationwide, conducting document reviews and on-site inspections, and plans to announce the results in the first half of this year.

Pohang City is participating in the complex-type contest in the secondary battery field and plans to connect the Yeongilman Industrial Complex and Blue Valley National Industrial Complex to develop a forward base for cathode material production in South Korea.

If designated as a specialized complex, the city will receive government support necessary for the innovative development and ecosystem creation of strategic industries, including infrastructure construction, tax reductions, package investments such as permits and infrastructure, and research and development (R&D).

Pohang City will emphasize its justification as the optimal site for the specialized complex by highlighting its achievements such as being designated as a battery regulatory free zone in 2019, selected as an excellent zone for three consecutive years, attracting joint investments worth 4 trillion won from leading companies and SMEs, and promoting national projects for secondary battery demonstration worth 100 billion won.

In particular, the city highlighted the high growth potential as a secondary battery production hub due to its excellent local research infrastructure and the strategic transportation location centered on Yeongilman Port, and presented the possibility of developing into a regional cluster that contributes to securing a technological gap and stabilizing the supply chain by establishing a full-cycle industrial ecosystem producing everything from raw materials to cathode materials.

Pohang City included in its plan the establishment of an innovation hub for the secondary battery material industry aiming to produce 1 million tons of cathode materials by 2030 through the solidarity and cooperation of large, medium, and small enterprises centered on leading companies such as EcoPro and POSCO Chemical.

Additionally, the city proposed a regional talent development policy led by the region by utilizing industry-academia-research infrastructure and manpower centered on local universities, and also suggested plans to expand equipment and infrastructure jointly used by industry, academia, and research.

Mayor Lee Kang-deok said, “Pohang is the optimal city for a secondary battery specialized complex with experience and competitiveness that led Korea’s industrial development through steel,” and added, “With the designation of the specialized complex, we will strive to create a new history of producing global companies like POSCO again and serve as an innovation hub that attracts enterprises.”