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POSCO Chemical completes Korea’s first plant for synthetic graphite anode plant
2021.12.02
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(Photo) The switching-on ceremony to celebrate the completion of POSCO Chemical synthetic graphite anode plant on December 2. (From the left) Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Council Kim Sang-heon, Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Council Lee Chil-gu, POSCO E&C Plant Business Division Head Kim Min-cheol, POSCO Pohang Steelworks Head Nam Soo-hee, RIST President Yoo Sung, POSCO New Growth Business Unit Head Chung Chang-Hwa, POSCO Chemical CEO Min Kyungzoon, Pohang Mayor Lee Kang-deok, Gyeongsangbuk-do Vice Governor Ha Dae-sung, National Assembly member Kim Byung-wook, Pohang City Council Chairman Jeong Hae-jong, Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Council Vice-Chairman Kim Hee-soo, and Pohang Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Moon Chung-do
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(Photo) POSCO Chemical CEO Min Kyungzoon, giving a commemorative speech at the ceremony for the completion of the synthetic graphite anode plant.
- Has the benefits of longer battery life and quick charging with synthetic graphite and also self-produces needle cokes as raw materials
- CEO Min Kyungzoon intends to contribute to the growth of the K-battery industry by achieving complete domestic production of synthetic graphite anode materials
- Will build an entire value chain from raw materials to production, thereby promoting differentiated competitiveness
After the establishment of Korea’s first production system for synthetic graphite anode materials, POSCO chemical has now begun full-scale production.
POSCO Chemical held a ceremony on December 2 at Blue Valley Industrial Complex in Donghae-myeon, Pohang designated as a Regulation-Free Special Zone for batteries to celebrate the completion of the synthetic graphite anode plant. Key management related to materials business in POSCO Group, such as POSCO Chemical CEO Min Kyungzoon, POSCO New Growth Business Unit Head Chung Chang-Hwa, and RIST President Yoo Sung, attended the event, along with Pohang Mayor Lee Kang-deok and National Assembly member Kim Byung-wook (Pohang Nam-gu/Ulleung-gun).
The synthetic graphite anode plant was built with an investment of a total of 230.7 billion KRW by POSCO Chemical for the domestic production of materials. It will have an annual production capacity of 16,000 tons by the time it is fully completed in 2023. With this first-phase construction, POSCO Chemical will be able to have an annual production capacity of 8,000 tons of synthetic graphite anode materials, which is enough to meet the demand of about 210 thousand 60kWh electric vehicles.
Synthetic graphite anode materials increase battery life and reduce the charging time for electric vehicles and thus have a 76% share in the global anode materials market as of 2020. However, Korea has been importing all such materials from Japan and China since there have been no manufacturers in Korea.
With the completion of this synthetic graphite anode plant, POSCO Chemical has established itself as a competent leader, being the first in Korea to domestically produce not only cathodes but also natural and synthetic graphite anodes that are the key materials of secondary batteries.
The company also has its subsidiary PMC Tech to produce needle cokes, which are the raw materials for synthetic graphite, thereby internalizing the entire value chain from raw materials to final production. With this domestic production, the company can now contribute to the growth of the K-battery industry by stabilizing the supply of secondary batteries.
Prior to completing the synthetic graphite anode materials plant in Pohang, POSCO Chemical had acquired a 15% stake in Sinuo, a Chinese manufacturer of synthetic graphite anode materials, in November, securing production capacity and a supply network in China. The company plans to diversify the export market for synthetic graphite anode materials and expand its global market share by creating a technological synergy and using Sinuo’s network.
In addition, POSCO Chemical has also been striving to secure raw materials for anodes. The company invested in Qingdao Zhongshuo in China to obtain spherical graphite that can be used as a raw material for high-quality natural graphite anodes in September. Pitch cokes for coating of anode materials are produced through P&O Chemical, a joint venture with OCI. POSCO also acquired a 15% stake in a graphite mine in Tanzania.
In addition to securing a stable supply chain of raw materials, POSCO Chemical is also accelerating the development of next-generation anode materials technology, such as lithium metal, and silicon anodes like silicon oxide (SiOx) and silicon carbide (Si-C) based on R&D with Research Institute of Industrial Science & Technology (RIST).
“The Korean battery industry has taken another leap forward by achieving complete localization of raw materials right through to the final production of synthetic graphite anodes for the first time in Korea,” said POSCO Chemical CEO Min Kyungzoon in the commemorative speech that day. “We will secure the world’s top-level business competitiveness by developing next-generation materials with POSCO Group’s R&D infrastructure and making intensive investments to secure process technology and mass-production capacity.”
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