Mayor Lee Gang-deok Proposes Steel Industry Crisis Solutions to People Power Party Leadership Visiting Pohang

Request for National Assembly-Level Support to Secure Competitiveness of Strategic Industries
“Hoping for Government-Wide Response Measures to Overcome the Crisis”

On the 5th, Lee Gang-deok, Mayor of Pohang, met with the People Power Party's floor leadership, who visited Pohang to overcome the crisis in the steel industry, and proposed measures to overcome the steel industry crisis.

A field meeting to overcome the crisis in the steel industry was held on the 5th at the Pohang Steelworks. Photo by Pohang City

Led by Floor Leader Kwon Seong-dong, the People Power Party leadership visited Pohang to gather on-site opinions on the crisis facing the steel industry, including global oversupply, increased trade uncertainties, and intensified demands for low-carbon transition, and to seek ways to overcome it.

On that day, the attendees visited the POSCO PR Center and POSCO's 2nd Heavy Plate Plant to tour the production site and listen to industry opinions. They also held a meeting with POSCO and Korea Iron & Steel Association officials to discuss measures to overcome the steel industry crisis.

At the meeting, Mayor Lee Gang-deok proposed measures to secure the competitiveness of regional strategic industries including steel, such as special responses to overcome the steel industry crisis, financial support for secondary battery environmental treatment facilities, establishment of POSTECH Medical School, and construction of a national AI computing center, requesting support at the National Assembly level.

Mayor Lee said, “I hope this on-site meeting will be of practical help in overcoming the crisis of the local steel industry,” and added, “I expect the ruling and opposition parties and the government to cooperate and prepare proactive, government-wide response measures to secure the competitiveness of local industries.”

Pohang City decided in February to jointly respond with Dangjin City and Gwangyang City to overcome the crisis in the steel industry, the region’s main industry, amid the worsening global trade environment, and continues to propose special support measures at the government and National Assembly levels, such as designation as a special industrial crisis response area, enactment of the Steel Industry Special Support Act, and reduction of industrial electricity rates.