With its technology for hydrogen-based pig iron production, the South Korean steel producer POSCO is preparing for the energy transition. POSCO AG (Pohang Iron and Steel Company) plans to complete the commercialization of its HyREX technology by 2030 and fully convert its steel mills in Pohang and Gwangyang to the new steelmaking technology by 2050.
The company will replace the existing blast furnace method at the Pohang plant with the HyREX-1 method in 2033, the steel company announced in a recent press release. By 2050, the company will complete the production facilities for hydrogen-based steel production at the Pohang and Gwangyang plants (a total of six facilities).
POSCO is developing a commercial process for producing direct reduced iron (DRI) using hydrogen as a reducing gas, based on HyREX technology. This is an innovative process in which iron ores are fed into a series of FINEX fluidized bed reactors. The molten iron is produced directly from iron ore fines and non-coking coal, without the need for pretreatment of raw materials. POSCO developed FINEX together with Siemens VAI (now Primetals Technologies) and put it into operation on an industrial scale for the first time worldwide in 2007.
POSCO and hydrogen reduction steelmaking
The company signed a business agreement with British plant manufacturer Primetals in July last year to build a HyREX test facility. The test facility is scheduled to be built in 2026 to confirm the commercial feasibility of hydrogen-based pig iron production. The company then aims to complete the commercialization of the HyREX technology by 2030.
By 2050, the blast furnace systems in the Pohang and Gwangyang plants are to be gradually converted to hydrogen reduction systems. Since the two locations each have three plants, there will be a total of six plants for hydrogen-based pig iron production.
Expanded production capacities
The South Korean steelmaker announced its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 in July. The group wants to achieve a global crude steel production capacity of 52 million tons by 2030. To this end, POSCO is increasing its efforts to establish environmentally friendly commercial production systems abroad. The company plans to double its overseas crude steel production capacity to more than 10 million tonnes in 2030 to further consolidate its position as a global steelmaker.
POSCO will establish an end-to-end automotive steel production line in Indonesia with the Krakatau POSCO center to ensure market leadership in Southeast Asia. The steel manufacturer also wants to build a low-carbon plant in India. The company also plans to expand its share in the Indian market by tying up with the POSCO cold rolling mill in the Indian state of Maharashtra.
