[New Year’s Address] POSCO Future M CEO Um Ki-chun: “Pursuing Global No.1 with Safety First and World-Class Strategies”

Um Ki-chun, CEO of POSCO Future M, announced the company’s management goals for the new year, outlining the advancement of the safety management system and world-class strategies for each business division, with the aim of achieving the number one global position by 2030.

A panoramic view of POSCO Future M's anode material factory in Yeongilman 4 Industrial Complex, Pohang, Gyeongbuk. POSCO Future M

In his New Year’s address on January 2, CEO Um stated, “We will become a world-class company recognized in the global market for our technology, quality, and trust,” setting forth goals such as ▲safety ▲achieving profit targets ▲pursuing world-class strategies ▲building an intelligence platform ▲and fostering a culture of labor-management harmony.

Regarding safety, CEO Um emphasized, “All employees must prioritize safety regulations as the foremost standard in every task and work to eliminate improper work practices,” adding, “We will establish a safety culture by promoting active safety communication and advance our safety management system by revising work standards and similar measures.”

CEO Um also presented plans to achieve profit targets under this year’s emergency management plan, stating, “We plan to pursue a 30% cost reduction across all divisions,” and urged, “Please review all work processes once again to realize zero waste and maximize profitability through low-cost operation technologies.” He continued, “Even in an emergency management situation, we will continue to invest in the future without wavering,” and added, “We will review investments selectively and push forward boldly and swiftly to build capabilities that allow us to respond to market demands in a timely manner.”

Additionally, CEO Um said, “By implementing world-class strategies for each business division, we will compete on equal footing with our competitors and further secure operational technology and cost competitiveness to gain an advantage,” adding, “Our goal is to achieve the number one position in global competitiveness by 2030.”

In terms of process technology, CEO Um explained, “For cathode materials, we will improve both production speed and quality by optimizing the efficiency of firing equipment and implementing precise control,” and added, “For anode materials, we will maximize productivity by increasing input volume and introducing a continuous graphitization process.” He continued, “To lead the market, in the short term, we will begin mass production of mid- to low-priced products such as lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and lithium manganese-rich (LMR) materials at an early stage, and in the long term, we will lead the market with next-generation products such as high-voltage LMR and all-solid-state cathode materials.”

CEO Um also stated, “We will accelerate efforts to secure new markets by developing activated carbon and thermal interface materials for batteries and semiconductors using MGO, and we will speed up the implementation of an intelligent production system through artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation (DX).”

Finally, CEO Um said, “Through process innovation plans, we will establish the management system ‘POSCO Future M Intelligence Platform’ and introduce a smart work environment based on data across all management areas, including research and development, order receipt, production, and decision-making.”

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