- On the 24th, POSCO FUTURE M approved an investment of 614.8 billion KRW for the construction of a high-nickel NCMA cathode production plant in Pohang.
- POSCO FUTURE’s investment plans are on track with the roadmap for cathode production capacity expansion.
- The aim is to preemptively respond to increasing global demand and to lead the market by securing a capacity for timely mass production.
According to the company’s website news release on April 25, 2023, POSCO FUTURE M will increase its cathode production capacity by 46,000 tons.
On the 24th, POSCO FUTURE M held a board of directors meeting and approved a project to invest a total of 614.8 billion KRW by 2025 in building a new 46,000-ton-capacity high-nickel *NCMA cathode production plant in the Yeongilman 4th General Industrial Complex in Pohang. Construction will begin in the second half of this year and is scheduled to be completed in 2025.
*NCMA cathodes: Cathodes produced using lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and aluminum as raw materials.
High-nickel NCMA cathodes are produced with a higher proportion of nickel, up to 80% or more than its usual proportion, and as they can increase battery capacity and output and extend vehicle lifespan, demand is rapidly increasing in line with the recent trend of electric vehicles becoming increasingly high-performance.
Currently, POSCO FUTURE M has a total production capacity of 105,000 tons of cathodes per year, which includes 90,000 tons from its Gwangyang plant, 10,000 tons from its Gumi plant, and 5,000 tons from its Zhejiang Pohua plant in Zhejiang Province, China.
With this investment decision, POSCO FUTURE M's cathode production capacity is expected to increase to a total of 271,000 tons by 2025.
In Pohang in particular, when the company’s 46,000-ton-capacity phase 2-2 plant, whose investment plan was approved on the 24th, is completed, in addition to its 30,000-ton-capacity phase 1 plant scheduled for completion in the second half of this year and its 30,000-ton-capacity phase 2 plant scheduled to begin construction this month, the company will have built a cathode material production complex with an annual capacity of 106,000 tons.
Moreover, overseas, POSCO FUTURE M is building a 30,000-ton-capacity joint cathode production plant in Quebec, Canada with General Motors (GM), as well as another joint production plant with Huayou Cobalt with an annual capacity of 30,000 tons in Zhejiang, China, making the total planned capacity 60,000 tons.
POSCO FUTURE M plans to make additional investments to realize its 345,000-ton global cathode production system roadmap by 2025, and it also aims to secure a leading position in the global market through steady R&D activities and product portfolio expansion.
