New Posco Holdings chief vows to forge ahead with battery materials investments

Freshly appointed Posco Holdings Chairman Chang In-hwa pledged to never be passive with investments in the battery materials business despite slowing global EV sales.

Posco Holdings Chairman Chang In-hwa speaks at a press conference held in southern Seoul on Thursday. [POSCO HOLDINGS]

Freshly appointed Posco Holdings Chairman Chang In-hwa pledged to never be passive with investments in the battery materials business despite slowing global EV sales.

"I feel this heavy responsibility to achieve splendid success in battery materials, the business that Posco has put effort into for more than a decade," Chang said during a press conference in southern Seoul on Thursday. “Steelmaking is the foundation of Posco Group and the battery materials business is a two-horse carriage."

Chang was appointed as the new chairman of Posco Holdings at a board meeting earlier in the day. The 69-year-old has held various positions at the company since 2011, ranging from the investment to finance departments. He was the president of Posco for three years from March 2018.

"We will make adequate investments at the appropriate time, and never be passive with the investment," Chang added.

“We see the current crisis in both businesses [steelmaking and battery materials] as a potential opportunity,” he said. “Posco will increase its competitiveness and the reward will be greater when the market recovers.”

The remarks come amid slowing EV sales growth globally while the company has been focusing on the materials business in recent years. The operating profit of Posco Future M, a battery materials subsidiary, plunged 78.4 percent last year compared to the previous year, while steel-making Posco saw a 27 percent year-on-year fall in profit.

Chang also said he will stay in Pohang, North Gyeongsang, where Posco’s steel mill is located, for 100 days from Thursday to hear from employees and learn about their vision for the company. The plant makes up 24 percent of Korea’s total steel production every year.

“I’ll stop by all Posco worksites and plants for 100 days to directly communicate with employees,” Chang said. “I do believe in our workers’ experience and capabilities, and those will shape Posco’s future.”

Chang is a Seoul National University graduate with bachelor's and master’s degrees in naval architecture and ocean engineering.

After obtaining a doctoral degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the same subject, Chang began working for the Posco-affiliated Research Institute of Industrial Science & Technology in 1988, where he stayed for 23 years.

Posco Holdings shares closed at 428,000 won ($323) on Thursday, up 0.35 percent from the previous trading day. Posco Future M shares closed up 1 percent at 318,500 won.

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