POSCO Holdings Inc. completes upstream facilities at second lithium plant in Argentina, kicks off push for 100,000-ton capacity by 2033

[Financial News] POSCO Holdings Inc. has completed the upstream facilities of its second brine lithium plant in Argentina, an investment of $954 million. The move will increase its local lithium production capacity to 48,000 metric tons a year. POSCO Holdings Inc. plans to complete the downstream facilities at the Yulchon Industrial Complex in South Jeolla Province next year, establishing a brine-based lithium hydroxide production system with annual capacity of 50,000 metric tons. It aims to expand its brine lithium production capacity in Argentina to 100,000 metric tons by 2033.
POSCO Holdings Inc. said on the 7th that it held a completion ceremony for the upstream facilities of its second brine lithium plant near Argentina’s Hombre Muerto salt flat on the 6th (local time), at an elevation of 4,000 meters. The ceremony came eight years after the company acquired mining rights at the salt flat in 2018.
Attendees at the event included POSCO Group Chairman Chang In-hwa and POSCO Argentina S.A.U. head Park Hyun, as well as Karina Milei, chief of staff at the Argentine president’s office; Diego Santilli, Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers; Salta Province Governor Gustavo Sáenz; Catamarca Province Governor Raúl Jalil; and South Korean Ambassador to Argentina Lee Jong-hwa.
The second plant’s upstream facilities have an annual lithium carbonate production capacity of 23,000 metric tons. Combined with the first plant, which has an annual capacity of 25,000 metric tons, this will bring local production capacity in Argentina to 48,000 metric tons a year.
POSCO Holdings Inc. plans to convert lithium carbonate produced at the second plant’s upstream facilities into battery-grade lithium hydroxide at the downstream facilities in the Yulchon Industrial Complex in South Jeolla Province, which are scheduled for completion in 2027. The facilities will produce 25,000 metric tons of lithium hydroxide a year; combined with the existing capacity of the first plant, they will form a brine-based lithium hydroxide production system with annual capacity of 50,000 metric tons.
POSCO Group began developing its own lithium extraction technology in 2010 and acquired mining rights at the Hombre Muerto salt flat in Argentina in 2018. In 2024, it completed its first plant, with annual capacity of 25,000 metric tons, and began commercial production.
POSCO Holdings Inc. is pursuing additional investment in plants 3 and 4. It plans to build each as a lithium carbonate production facility with annual capacity of 25,000 metric tons. If the expansion goes ahead, Argentina’s brine lithium production capacity will rise to 100,000 metric tons a year by 2033.
Lithium carbonate produced at plants 3 and 4 will be used to meet demand from the energy storage system (ESS) market, which is expanding with the spread of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, and from the lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery sector.
On the day of the completion ceremony, POSCO Argentina S.A.U. signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the provincial governments of Salta and Catamarca to advance plans for plants 3 and 4. The two governments agreed to cooperate by providing administrative support and permits needed to move the projects forward.
The Argentine government continues to support local investment. Before the South Korea-Argentina summit held in July, POSCO Argentina S.A.U. secured approval under RIGI, the Argentine government’s investment incentive program. The company will consequently receive benefits including a corporate tax reduction and tariff exemptions. In August, it also arranged a short-term revolving credit facility of up to $700 million with IDB Invest.
Under its “Triple Core” strategy, which positions industrial, strategic and energy resources as key growth pillars for the group, POSCO Group plans to expand efforts to secure, develop and produce critical minerals, including lithium.
During the visit, Chairman Chang inspected the second plant’s production facilities and completion status, and reviewed plans for plants 3 and 4 and cooperation matters with the local government.
At the completion ceremony, Chairman Chang said, “Going forward, we will proactively secure competitive resources, link them to production and profitability, and ensure a stable supply of critical minerals needed by the nation’s industries.”

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