The Pohang plant is the company's second base of manufacturing for the single catalyst battery electrode as POSCO Future M succeeded in the mass-production for the first time at a plant in the southern port city of Gwangyang in March 2023.
POSCO Future M said that the company started the mass production of the single catalyst cathode at its Pohang plant in November, about two months before the scheduled operation in January 2024. The nickel-cobalt-manganese-aluminum (NCMA) single-crystal cathode material with a nickel content of 86 percent will be supplied to Ultium Cells, a United States battery joint venture between General Motors (GM) and LG Energy Solution.
Demands for NCMA single catalyst cathodes are high in the global electric vehicle market as they feature higher energy density and high stability in extreme heat conditions. It also has a longer lifespan compared to other electrodes made of different materials, making it ideal for high-performance electric vehicles (EVs).
POSCO Future M said that the company will continue to expand its single catalyst cathode lineup and increase the number of manufacturing bases in South Korea and overseas countries to produce cathodes with different sizes of catalytic particles. Currently, POSCO Future M's annual production capacity of the NCMA cathodes is 30,000 tons and it will be increased to 106,000 tons by 2026.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
