Posco and partners target ESS, EVs with Korean LFP cathode materials plant

A South Korean joint venture including battery material and chemicals group Posco Future M has broken ground for an LFP cathode materials plant in the country targeting the ESS and EV batteries market.

CNP New Material Technology, backed by Posco, secondary batteries firm Pino and battery materials producer CNGR, started building the facility “in earnest” on May 28 ― with production set to start next year.

Posco said the Pohang facility will ramp up production to an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes.

Separately, Posco is itself converting part of an existing three-element high-nickel production line at its Pohang cathode material plant into an LFP cathode material production line.

Prototype production will begin soon and mass production is planned from the second half of this year, giving Posco an early entry into the LFP cathode material business, the group said.

While LFP batteries have lower output compared to ternary batteries such as NCM and NCA, they have an advantage in terms of low price and long lifespan, Posco said.

However, the group plans to market LFP products alongside its current main ternary products such as NCM and NCA batteries.

Posco said an expansion of renewable energy and spread of AI-based data centres in South Korea and globally have led to increased power needs, leading to a rapid rise in demand for LFP batteries for ESS, and the use of LFP batteries is also expanding in the EV market, especially in entry-level vehicles.

North America and Europe are seen as key overseas markets for LFP batteries from the joint venture as those regions look to secure supply chains.

Batteries International reported last year that South Korea had scrambled to shore up the country’s battery sector with an initial cash infusion worth close to $15 billion, as a global slump in EV sales took its toll on the industry.

Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said on January 15 the KRW21 trillion jump-start was needed to ensure Korean battery production for EVs and energy storage systems could remain competitive at home and abroad.