POSCO Future M signs 30 trillion won anode material supply contract with LG Energy Solution

7-Year Large-Scale Supply Contract Signed
LG Energy Solution Supply Contract Exceeds 52 Trillion Won
Total Anode Material Orders Surpass 92 Trillion Won

POSCO Future M is solidifying its partnership by signing a cathode material supply contract worth 30 trillion KRW with LG Energy Solution.

On the 26th, POSCO Future M signed a contract to supply cathode materials worth approximately 30.2595 trillion KRW to LG Energy Solution over seven years from this year until 2029. Calculating the average annual supply amount results in about 4.3 trillion KRW. This surpasses the annual supply scale of 4 trillion KRW over 10 years worth 40 trillion KRW signed with Samsung SDI in January.

The products supplied by POSCO Future M are high-nickel NCM and NCMA cathode materials, which are core battery materials necessary for enhancing electric vehicle performance, and will be supplied to LG Energy Solution’s domestic and overseas battery factories.

POSCO Future M Gwangyang Cathode Material Plant
[Photo provided by POSCO Future M]
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Cathode materials account for more than 40% of the battery cost and are key materials that determine capacity and output. High-nickel cathode materials, mainly used in electric vehicle batteries, maximize the nickel content to increase the battery’s energy storage capacity, and use cobalt, manganese, aluminum, and others together to complement stability and output, making them high value-added products.

With this supply contract, POSCO Future M has further strengthened its long-standing cooperative relationship with LG Energy Solution. Since entering the battery materials business in 2011, POSCO Future M began collaborating with LG Energy Solution on product development and has maintained a close partnership by actively supplying cathode and anode materials since 2012.

Following the large-scale supply contract worth 1.8533 trillion KRW signed in 2020, POSCO Future M also secured about 22 trillion KRW worth of cathode materials from Ultium Cells, a joint venture between LG Energy Solution and GM, in 2022. With this contract, POSCO Future M’s order volume for LG Energy Solution has exceeded 52 trillion KRW. Including the supply contract with Samsung SDI, the current total cathode material order amount reaches 92 trillion KRW.

POSCO Future M stated, “We are actively exploring entry into major electric vehicle markets such as the United States, China, and Europe, as well as Korea,” and added, “Cathode material production capacity is expected to increase from the current 105,000 tons to 610,000 tons by 2030, and anode materials from 82,000 tons to 320,000 tons by 2030.”

Kim Jun-hyung, CEO of POSCO Future M, said, “The growth of POSCO Future M’s battery materials business was possible because of the close cooperation with LG Energy Solution from the early stages of the business,” and added, “We will further strengthen our business capabilities for customers, including raw material competitiveness, quality technology, and stable mass production capacity, and solidify future partnerships even more.”

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