Korea Zinc's Sulfuric Acid Nickel Manufacturing Technology Included in 'National Strategic Technologies' List

Tax Benefits for Nickel Refinery
to Be Completed in 2026

Korea Zinc's nickel sulfate manufacturing technology related to secondary batteries has been included in the national strategic technology list.

On the 17th, Korea Zinc announced that its "Manufacturing and Processing Technology of Metal Compounds for Cathode Materials" related to nickel sulfate was newly confirmed as a national strategic technology.

Korea Zinc held an emergency board meeting at its headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on October 30 last year. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

National strategic technologies are designated by the government as technologies recognized for their strategic importance in diplomacy and security, and for their significant impact on the national economy and related industries. They are selected through reviews by relevant ministries such as the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and designated technologies receive administrative and financial support at the government level.

The nickel sulfate manufacturing technology is Korea Zinc's unique technology that produces metal compounds for cathode materials, which are core materials of secondary batteries, and is evaluated as a key technology that will contribute to reducing South Korea's battery industry's dependence on China. Domestic battery manufacturers and material companies have long pointed out the problem of dependence on overseas sources for critical minerals and have demanded strategic government support for domestic refining businesses.

Korea Zinc stated, "Following the designation of the precursor source technology as a national advanced strategic technology last year, the inclusion of this nickel sulfate technology further strengthens our pivotal role in the national strategic industry."

In particular, with this technology designation, Korea Zinc will also be able to receive additional tax benefits related to investments in building the world's only "all-in-one nickel refinery." Korea Zinc expects that once the refinery, which requires an investment of over 500 billion KRW, begins operation in 2026, it will achieve cost savings of approximately 80 to 90 billion KRW in income tax and corporate tax.

A company official said, "Despite the hostile takeover (M&A) situation that has lasted over four months, the current management and Korea Zinc employees are striving to maintain the 'global number one' position," adding, "We will protect the company and shareholders to prevent these core technologies from becoming tools for private equity funds to recover profits or from being leaked overseas to countries such as China."

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