POSCO Holdings Inc. and JSW Group plan to construct a 5-million-ton integrated steel plant in India’s eastern state of Odisha, marking the Korean steelmaker’s renewed push into the world’s fastest-growing major steel market.
The joint venture, announced Tuesday in Mumbai, will split investment costs between the two companies. The project’s estimated value matches POSCO’s earlier 2005 attempt at 12 billion dollars, according to industry sources familiar with the matter.
The partnership comes as India’s steel consumption is projected to surge to 400 million tons by 2047 from 120 million tons in 2023, driven by automotive and infrastructure expansion. For POSCO, facing profit pressures from Chinese competition, the move represents a strategic pivot to enhance its overseas operations.
The world’s seventh-largest steelmaker has seen its consolidated operating profit decline to an expected 3 trillion won ($2.2 billion) this year, down from 4.9 trillion won in 2022. Its overseas steel profit dropped to 194 billion won in 2023 from 1.5 trillion won in 2021.
POSCO currently operates a rolling mill in Maharashtra, processing materials from South Korea for automakers including Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor. The new venture with India’s largest steelmaker replaces a previous agreement with Adani Group from 2022.
