POSCO Inter, Mobility Determination..."We Don't Sell Mobility Solutions"

Mexico Drive Motor Core Plant to Be Completed Next Month
"Shipments for Mexico... No Direct Impact from Tariff Concerns"

POSCO International has denied rumors circulating in the market about the sale of its subsidiary POSCO Mobility Solution and expressed its commitment and expectations for investment in the mobility business. The second plant of the Mexico Drive Motor Core, which has increased uncertainty due to tariff risks with the United States, is expected to be completed around next month and enter full-scale mass production.

According to the industry on the 5th, POSCO International recently stated at a private investor relations (IR) meeting that "the rumors of an external sale of POSCO Mobility Solution are groundless" and "the mobility business is one of the focused investment areas." A company official added, "The closure of the stainless steel (STS) business division facilities and restructuring situations were mistakenly leaked externally."

Previously, there were market expectations that POSCO would sell POSCO Mobility Solution as part of the ongoing restructuring since last year. POSCO Mobility Solution is a 100% subsidiary of POSCO International and recorded an operating loss of 16.3 billion KRW last year. It has posted losses for two consecutive years following 23.3 billion KRW in the previous year.

The mobility business, which is being developed through this subsidiary and overseas operations, is one of the areas that CEO Lee Gae-in of POSCO International has shown determination in since his inauguration and has been focusing on for business diversification. The construction of the Mexico Drive Motor Core second plant, which will be completed next month and start full-scale mass production in the fourth quarter, was also approved by the board of directors after CEO Lee's appointment, accelerating the process. Once the Mexico second plant, which began construction in May last year, is completed, an annual production system of 2.5 million units will be established by combining it with the Ramos Arizpe first plant completed in 2023. The production volume as of last year was about 1.88 million units.

POSCO International explained that its Mexico plant is not directly affected by the tariff conflict with the United States triggered by former President Donald Trump. A company official said, "All drive motor cores produced at the Mexico plant are supplied within Mexico and do not cross the border," adding, "The first plant mainly produces electric vehicle parts, and the second plant focuses on hybrid production." However, the official added, "Since it is part of the overall value chain, it cannot be completely free from tariff issues."

A new drive motor core plant in Poland will be constructed around May. The company is securing an additional annual capacity of 1.2 million units and is conducting training for technical personnel and establishing systems to start mass production by the end of the year.

Earlier, POSCO International announced that its sales last year were 32.3408 trillion KRW, and operating profit was 1.1169 trillion KRW. This represents decreases of 2.4% and 4.0%, respectively, compared to the previous year. By business segment, gas (E&P) recorded an operating profit of 382 billion KRW, followed by terminal and power generation (231 billion KRW), steel (155 billion KRW), eco-friendly materials (111 billion KRW), and food bio (14 billion KRW).