Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- In an effort to nurture materials for electric vehicle batteries as its next growth engine, Posco Chemical, a unit of South Korean steel group Posco, signed an investment agreement to build production facilities for synthetic graphite cathode materials in the southeastern industrial port of Pohang.

Under an agreement signed on Friday with city and provincial government officials, Posco Chemical will invest 250 billion won ($213 million) to build production facilities for synthetic graphite cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries at a state-designated industrial complex in Pohang. Construction will begin next year.

Posco Chemical CEO Min Kyung-jun has vowed to step up the localization of synthetic graphite cathode materials, which have a stable crystal structure to enhance the performance of batteries, compared to natural graphite cathode materials.

The steel group has invested heavily in lithium-ion battery materials. In June, Posco Chemical set up a special research center in Pohang to develop high-capacity anode and cathode products, new technology for battery materials and technologies for key materials for next-generation batteries. The cathode is an electrode from which a conventional current leaves a polarized electrical device, while the current enters into a polarized electrical device through an anode.