POSCO Chemical to Invest in Artificial Graphite Anode Materials for Electric Vehicle Batteries

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] POSCO Chemical is targeting the rapidly growing electric vehicle battery materials market through investment in artificial graphite anode materials.

On the 30th, POSCO Chemical held a board meeting and approved an investment of 217.7 billion KRW to establish a production plant for artificial graphite anode materials.

Through this investment, POSCO Chemical will actively respond to the explosive growth expected in the electric vehicle market. In addition, by expanding its product portfolio to include artificial graphite anode materials following cathode materials and natural graphite anode materials, the company has further strengthened its market position as a global comprehensive secondary battery materials company.

The newly established anode material plant will have an annual production capacity of 16,000 tons and will be built on a 78,535㎡ site within the Pohang Blue Valley National Industrial Complex. The 16,000 tons of anode materials can supply approximately 360,000 electric vehicles based on a 50kWh battery capacity. Construction of the production facility will begin this year, with completion targeted for 2023.

Artificial graphite anode materials have a consistent and stable internal structure compared to natural graphite products due to the characteristics of raw materials and processes. They have a long lifespan and are advantageous for fast charging, making them primarily used in electric vehicle batteries and other applications.

POSCO Chemical will securely source needle coke, the raw material for artificial graphite, from its subsidiary PMC Tech. By utilizing self-produced raw materials, the company plans to advance its business value chain and maximize profitability and added value.

POSCO Chemical explained, "The secondary battery market for electric vehicles is expected to grow more than 15 times over ten years, from 194GWh in 2020 to 3,066GWh in 2030. Accordingly, demand for artificial graphite anode materials for electric vehicle batteries is also expected to surge, making it necessary to timely expand production capacity," expressing confidence in the investment's effectiveness.

With this business entry, POSCO Chemical is expected to achieve localization of artificial graphite anode materials, significantly enhancing the competitiveness of the domestic secondary battery materials industry. POSCO Chemical is also participating in the government’s materials, parts, and equipment supply chain reinforcement project and is promoting production technology development. Until now, Japanese and Chinese companies have led the artificial graphite anode materials market.

POSCO Chemical plans to continue expanding investments to increase its global market share by conducting next-generation material research through its Secondary Battery Materials Research Center and increasing annual production capacity by 2023 to 105,000 tons of natural graphite anode materials, 16,000 tons of artificial graphite anode materials, and 90,000 tons of cathode materials.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.