POSCO has begun full-scale production of 130,000 N㎥ of rare gas per year.

POSCO Heavy Industries Air Solutions began construction of a high-purity rare gas plant on the Donghoan site in Gwangyang-si, Jeollanam-do on the 5th.

POSCO Zhongtai Air Solution is a high-purity rare gas production corporation launched in August of this year, a joint venture between POSCO Holdings and China Zhongtai Cryogenic Technology with respective stakes of 75.1% and 24.9%.

Rare gases refer to neon (18 ppm), xenon (0.09 ppm), and krypton (1.1 ppm) that exist only in extremely small amounts in the air, and are mainly used in cutting-edge industries such as semiconductors, displays, and satellite propulsion fuel.

In Korea, POSCO is the only company producing crude rare gas at its steel mill oxygen plant.

Since December of last year, POSCO Holdings has been working with Zhongtai to establish a high-purity rare gas plant to refine rare gases produced at oxygen plants into 99.999% pure rare gases and supply them to domestic and international semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Intel of the U.S.

Zhongtai has high expertise in engineering high-purity rare gas production facilities.

The high-purity rare gas plant is scheduled to be built on the south side of the Donghoan area of the Gwangyang Steel Works and is scheduled to be completed in November next year, with an annual production capacity of 130,000 N㎥ (normal cubic meters).

This is a regulation that can supply 52% of the domestic semiconductor market demand.It is expected to contribute greatly to the localization of high-purity rare gas materials, which have so far been largely dependent on imports, and to the growth of national cutting-edge industries such as semiconductors and the space industry.

Due to the existing laws that only allowed steel-related businesses to move into Gwangyang Donghoan, there were difficulties in promoting new businesses using idle and unfilled land. However, in October 2023, the government quickly revised the relevant laws to promote investment using the Donghoan site, and this time, it became possible to promote the largest high-purity rare gas project in Korea on the Donghoan site.

The groundbreaking ceremony on the 5th was attended by around 100 people, including Jeong Soon-gu, CEO of POSCO Heavy Industries Air Solutions, Park Chang-hwan, Vice Governor of South Jeolla Province for Economic Affairs, Kim Ki-hong, Vice Mayor of Gwangyang City, Lee Hyeong-su, Director of POSCO’s Management Planning Division, Lee Dong-ryeol, Director of Gwangyang Steel Works, and Lee Ja-rong, Vice President of Heavy Industries.

Lee Hyung-soo, head of POSCO’s Management Planning Division, emphasized, “POSCO Group plans to expand its industrial gas business portfolio, starting with the production of high-purity rare gases, special gases utilizing byproducts of iron and steel manufacturing, and supplying oxygen and nitrogen for the production of secondary battery materials.”