Restart of 6 Rolling Mills at Pohang Steelworks... Resolving Supply Disruptions of Key Products

Detailed Inspection of Client Supply Status and Customized Measures by Product
Support Plans for Suppliers and Partners to Protect the Steel Industry Ecosystem

POSCO recently announced on the 27th that the 3rd Heavy Plate Mill at the Pohang Steelworks has resumed operations.

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] POSCO Pohang Steelworks has restarted operations at six rolling mills.

POSCO announced on the 27th that with the recent completion of repairs at the No. 3 heavy plate mill, a total of six rolling mills including No. 2 and 3 electrical steel, No. 1 cold rolling, No. 1 hot rolling, and No. 1 wire rod have resumed operations. Concerns over supply disruptions for Pohang Steelworks' main products such as electrical steel sheets, cold-rolled sheets, wire rods, and heavy plate products are also being alleviated.

In November, the No. 3 and 4 wire rod mills and No. 2 heavy plate mill are planned to be restarted, and in December, the No. 2 hot rolling, No. 2 wire rod, No. 2 cold rolling, and stainless steel No. 1 and 2 cold rolling mills will be restarted.

Currently, POSCO Group executives and employees are participating in the Pohang Steelworks restoration work. POSCO Group Chairman Choi Jeong-woo frequently visits the site to participate in the restoration work and encourage employees, leading the recovery efforts.

Regarding the No. 2 hot rolling mill, which suffered significant damage due to the flooding of Naengcheon Stream and requires replacement of 11 out of 15 rolling mill motor drives, Chairman Choi requested cooperation from Indian JSW Chairman Sajjan Jindal, who is also active as a member of the World Steel Association board. Chairman Jindal decided to provide equipment being manufactured for JSW's hot rolling mill within three days, scheduled to arrive next month. This will significantly shorten the restoration time for the No. 2 hot rolling mill.

Choi Jung-woo, Chairman of POSCO Group (second from the right), is visiting the restoration site of Pohang Steelworks on the 23rd to encourage the employees.

POSCO is operating a typhoon damage recovery team and a company-wide comprehensive response team daily, and to alleviate customer supply concerns and prevent supply shortages in advance, it is conducting precise inspections of inventory and supply status through one-on-one consultations with all customers.

Additionally, POSCO is responding to the emergency situation by expanding production grades and sizes by plant, establishing a dual production system early at Gwangyang Steelworks, and supplying through overseas subsidiaries.

Support measures for domestic suppliers and partners are also being implemented. POSCO is providing liquidity support of approximately 29.5 billion KRW to 17 companies recruited after the flood damage through the Steel ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) Win-Win Fund and the Win-Win Cooperation Special Fund totaling 170.7 billion KRW.

For domestic stainless steel scrap suppliers, who are facing difficulties due to reduced delivery volumes caused by POSCO's high sales ratio, POSCO has decided to make advance purchases even before the restart of stainless steel No. 2 and 3 steelmaking plants. Furthermore, when additional material needs arise due to production conversion and increase at Gwangyang Steelworks, priority orders are placed with suppliers at Pohang Steelworks.

A POSCO official stated, "We are deploying partner company employees to restoration work to alleviate employment insecurity, and POSCO management has directly visited not only Pohang Steelworks partners but also 15 partner companies supporting restoration at Gwangyang Steelworks in Pohang to express gratitude and encouragement," adding, "Even amid the emergency situation, we are proceeding with restoration work calmly, prioritizing safety over speed, and adhering to the principle of maintaining safety as the highest value more safely today than yesterday."

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