Gyeongbuk Pohang Secondary Battery Specialized Complex... Annual Production of 250,000 Tons
Overseas Companies Dominate Industrial Gas Market... "Enhancing Domestic Competitiveness"
POSCO is expanding the supply of high-purity oxygen and nitrogen required for the production process of secondary battery materials by establishing new industrial gas production and storage facilities.
On the 5th, POSCO announced that it has begun construction of an industrial gas production facility with a capacity of 250,000 tons in the secondary battery specialized complex located in the Yeongilman General Industrial Complex in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, investing approximately 100 billion KRW.
POSCO will build an oxygen plant on a 16,500㎡ (about 5,000 pyeong) site, installing an air separation unit that separates and purifies oxygen and nitrogen from the air, as well as a large storage tank capable of storing 2,000 tons of liquid oxygen. The large storage tank will be installed first in the second half of 2024, and the air separation unit will be completed by the second half of 2025 to supply high-purity oxygen and nitrogen used in the production processes of cathode materials, precursors, and nickel refining, which are key materials for secondary batteries.
POSCO plans to economically supply industrial gases by signing long-term supply contracts with POSCO Future M, which operates a cathode material plant within the Pohang secondary battery specialized complex. Through the newly established air separation unit and large storage tank, it is expected to supply up to 100,000 tons of cathode materials, 50,000 tons of pure nickel, and 110,000 tons of precursors annually. POSCO stated, "More than 90% of the domestic industrial gas market is occupied by companies owned by foreign and private equity funds," and added, "The expansion of POSCO’s industrial gas supply will enhance domestic industrial competitiveness."
A panoramic view of the oxygen plant at Pohang Steelworks, completed earlier this year [Photo provided by POSCO]
POSCO owns a total of 22 oxygen plants at its Pohang and Gwangyang steelworks. This is the largest scale in the country, producing about 17 million tons of industrial gases annually. Of this, 16 million tons are used in steel production processes, and the remainder is sold externally. Gaseous oxygen and nitrogen are sold to POSCO Future M’s Cheongnim plant in Pohang, SNNC near Donghoan in Gwangyang, and others connected by pipelines to the steelworks. Some gases are liquefied and sold to small and medium-sized filling stations and gas retailers using tank lorries.
Oxygen and nitrogen are essential in production processes not only for steel but also for various industries such as semiconductors, shipbuilding, chemicals, and automobiles. The domestic gaseous gas market size is about 2.2 trillion KRW annually, and the liquid gas market is about 500 billion KRW annually. Among the gaseous market demand sectors, the semiconductor and secondary battery material fields account for 80%, and continuous growth is expected.
POSCO plans to explore expanding air separation unit facilities near demand sites in the future and expand its business through the commercialization of special gases using rare gases essential for the semiconductor industry such as neon (Ne), krypton (Kr), and xenon (Xe), as well as general industrial gases like oxygen and nitrogen, and special gases utilizing steelworks by-products.
POSCO started a new business utilizing industrial gases produced at the steelworks oxygen plants in 2021, and in January of this year, it established the Industrial Gas Business Division to expand the industrial gas business and transition to a specialized operating system, officially entering the industrial gas market.
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