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Air Products to supply nitrogen and oxygen for cathode-materials plant in South Korea

| By Mary Bailey

Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) announced it has been awarded the onsite oxygen and nitrogen supply for POSCO Chemical’s new cathode-material manufacturing complex being built in Gwangyang, South Korea. POSCO Chemical is an affiliate of POSCO Group, the largest integrated steelmaker in Korea and one of the largest in the world. 

Air Products has been supplying pipeline oxygen to POSCO Chemical’s existing site in Gumi for producing cathode materials used in secondary batteries. To support POSCO Chemical’s new production line, Air Products will build, own and operate two air separation units, which are scheduled to come on-stream in 2020. 

“POSCO Chemical has been a strategic customer of Air Products, and we are honored to have their continued confidence in our capabilities to support their expansion into Gwangyang,” said Kyo-Yung Kim, president of Air Products Korea. “Demand for secondary batteries in Korea continues to increase sharply, which is in part fueled by the rapid growth of electric vehicles and energy storage systems due to environmental trends. Air Products will continue to look for opportunities to bring reliable and efficient gas solutions to this burgeoning industry.” 

Cathode materials are a major component of secondary batteries and are critical for battery performance. These materials are commonly used in devices, such as mobile phones, consumer devices, energy storage systems, golf carts, electric bicycles and electric vehicles. 

The global leading steelmaker POSCO Group has been expanding its business into the secondary battery industry. POSCO Chemical was formed in April 2019 following the merger between POSCO Chemtech and POSCO ESM—two affiliates of the Group engaged in the production of key battery materials—which were founded in 1963 and 2012, respectively.