Australian Prime Minister Albanese Visits POSCO Pohang Steelworks: "Strengthening Economic Cooperation Between the Two Countries"

First Visit by an Australian Prime Minister in 22 Years Since John Howard
Meeting with Chairman Jang Inhwa After Touring the Steelworks
Signing of MOU with BHP for Low-Carbon Steelmaking

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited the POSCO Pohang Steelworks. This marks the first visit by an Australian Prime Minister to POSCO in 22 years, since John Howard in 2003. Both within and outside the company, the visit is seen as an opportunity to further strengthen partnerships between Korea and Australia across industries such as resources, materials, and future energy.

According to POSCO Holdings on October 30, Prime Minister Albanese toured the raw material dock at the Pohang Steelworks, observing the process where Australian iron ore and coking coal are actually used, and received a briefing on 'HyREX,' Korea's hydrogen-based steelmaking technology. Since POSCO Group began purchasing Australian iron ore in 1971, it has used more than 1.5 billion tons of Australian iron ore and coking coal to date. This is regarded as a symbolic example of Korea-Australia cooperation in the resources and steel industries.

On the 30th, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited the Pohang Steelworks. Chairman Jang Inhwa of POSCO Group and Prime Minister Albanese agreed to continuously expand economic cooperation between Korea and Australia. Provided by POSCO Holdings

After touring the steelworks, Prime Minister Albanese reportedly held a meeting with POSCO Group Chairman Jang Inhwa. At the meeting, Prime Minister Albanese stated, "Australia is one of the world's leading resource-rich nations and a land of limitless opportunity to grow industries through investment in critical minerals. We will continue to expand cooperation with Korea." Chairman Jang responded, "Australia is a strategic partner with whom we are pioneering future growth industries, not only in steel but also in secondary battery materials and energy. I expect this visit will serve as a catalyst for solidifying trust between our two countries."

POSCO Group began investing in a stake in the Roy Hill iron ore mine in Australia in 2010 and is currently pursuing a local project to produce HBI, a low-carbon steelmaking material. In 2022, POSCO Group acquired Senex Energy in Australia to expand its natural gas business.

On this day, POSCO Group also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with BHP, a leading global raw materials company from Australia, to cooperate on research and development (R&D) of the HyREX low-carbon steelmaking process. Under this agreement, BHP will provide iron ore and technical expertise necessary for the trial operation of the HyREX demonstration plant. POSCO Group plans to develop its cooperation with BHP into a climate change response model involving both global steelmakers and raw material suppliers.

Earlier that morning, Chairman Jang delivered a keynote speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit held at the Gyeongju Arts Center, under the theme "Connecting the Future: POSCO's Supply Chain Partnership for Shared Prosperity." Addressing the rise of stable supply chains as a key issue in the global economy, Chairman Jang emphasized, "Multilateral cooperation and solidarity are essential for building sustainable and resilient global supply chains." He also shared examples of cooperation with Australia, including strengthening raw material supply chains, joint development of low-carbon products, and future energy transition.

Meanwhile, POSCO Group hosted 'POSCO NIGHT' the previous day, inviting major business partners. Attendees included Simon Trott, CEO of Rio Tinto Group, and Zhu Wei, President of CATL ESS, who discussed potential business collaborations with POSCO Group executives.