Posco's battery recycling plant in Brzheg, Poland, was completed and put into operation, the company said in a news release. The recycling plant recyles used batteries through the Polish Legnica Sourcing Center (PLSC) and turns them into a black powder containing elements such as nickel, lithium, cobalt and manganese, The black powder is finally pressed into chunks and shipped to the plant of PoSCO Recycling Korea (a joint venture between POSCO and China's Huayou Cobalt) to extract elements such as nickel, lithium, cobalt and manganese from the powder.

Nickel, lithium, cobalt and manganese are important raw materials for making batteries for electric vehicles, and stable access to these materials will determine the market competitiveness of an electric vehicle company.

Posco had previously signed an agreement with LG Energy Solutions to collect 10,000 tons of waste batteries annually from LG Energy Solutions' plant in Poland to supply to POSCO's new battery recycling plant in Poland. Posco, meanwhile, plans to partner with Sungeel HiTech, a South Korean battery recycler, to run its new battery recycling plant in Poland.

Posco has been expanding its battery material business in recent years. To build a stable battery material value chain, POSCO has invested in battery raw material mines in Australia and Argentina, while forming partnerships with local mining companies. Posco plans to produce 300,000 tons of lithium carbonate, 220,000 tons of nickel, 610,000 tons of cathode materials and 320,000 tons of anode materials by 2030.