POSCO Holdings Inc. launched its first lithium hydroxide plant in Argentina’s Salta Province, marking the South Korean steelmaker’s expansion in the electric vehicle supply chain.
The 25,000-ton facility at Hombre Muerto Salt Pan will boost the company’s total annual production capacity to 46,500 tons, including output from its Gwangyang plant in South Korea. The new facility can supply enough material for about 600,000 electric vehicles.
The plant represents the first phase of POSCO’s three-stage lithium project in Argentina, which began after acquiring mining rights to the salt flat in 2018. The company invested $830 million in the initial phase, implementing proprietary extraction technology that reduces costs through raw material recycling.
POSCO is already constructing a second facility with similar capacity, backed by a 1 trillion won ($737 million) investment. The plant is scheduled for completion in late 2025. A planned third phase would add 50,000 tons of capacity.
The battery materials unit chief Kim Jun-hyung said the Argentina plant positions the company for leadership in global lithium production. The expansion comes as automakers worldwide race to secure battery materials amid surging EV demand.
