Posco to jointly invest $40 billion to produce eco-friendly energies in Australia

Posco Holdings Chairman Choi Jeong-woo speaks during a Korea-Australia Business Council meeting held on November 30 in Sydney. [POSCO HOLDINGS]

Posco companies will invest $40 billion to produce eco-friendly energies in Australia.

Unspecified Australian companies will also join the investment, of which some $28 billion will go into hydrogen production, while the remainder will go into the green steel sector.

The investment plan was discussed Thursday during Posco Holdings Chairman Choi Jeong-woo's meeting with Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese.

"In order to go carbon neutral by 2050, Posco Group has been giving a focus to develop HyREX technology, which emits water instead of carbon dioxide when producing steel," Posco Holdings Chairman Choi said. "And we are eyeing Australia as the most important country to make investments to secure hydrogen for the technology.

"We plan to expand our investment in Australia and widen the areas, from steel to renewable energies, hydrogen and green steel."

HyREX technology, which the company also calls Hydrogen Reduction, is a steelmaking method to manufacture molten metal using iron ore fines and hydrogen. It uses hydrogen instead of fossil fuels, thus can dramatically reduce carbon emissions in the steelmaking process.

The company also said it will also produce green hydrogen in Australia, and develop hot briquetted iron (HBI), a processed iron obtained by molding reduced iron, an iron ore from which oxygen has been removed, in the shape of briquettes. HBI can be used as a pre-reduced material in blast furnaces or electric arc furnaces.

Green hydrogen, which uses renewable energy, such as solar and wind for its production, is considered to be the ultimate eco-friendly option, while the world moves toward carbon neutrality.

"Posco's investment plan corresponds to the direction of policies the Australian government is trying to push hard," Albanese said, "We will actively cooperate with Posco's future material business in Australia.

Choi also asked Albanese to visit Korea and Posco's plants.

"I will visit Posco during my visit to Korea, which is scheduled for next year," the prime minister said.

Posco companies have invested some $3.1 billion in Australia so far.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]