
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Renascor Resources and POSCO, one of South Korea’s largest conglomerates, will support a $209 million investment in South Australia to develop a Battery Anode Material (BAM) manufacturing facility in the Eyre Peninsula.
The MoU provides for the purchase of up to 30,000 tonnes per annum of Purified Spherical Graphite (PSG) from Renascor’s planned BAM manufacturing facility and a potential equity investment by POSCO in Renascor.
The South Australian Government states that the project is forecast to create 190 full-time roles, more than 100 jobs during construction and has the potential to generate around $260 million a year in export revenue.
Minister for Trade and Investment, Stephen Patterson, welcomed the collaboration between Renascor and POSCO, a world leader in the supply of lithium-ion battery materials.
“The Department for Trade and Investment’s North East Asia team, based out of Seoul, have been instrumental in working with Renascor on their Korean strategy and advancing discussions – with POSCO to support this project,” Minister Patterson said.
“I congratulate Renascor and POSCO on this significant strategic cooperation which aligns with Australia’s Critical Minerals Strategy and the National Manufacturing Priority Roadmap.”
“This is a significant investment by Renascor in South Australia and provides our state with a new opportunity as the only graphite purification and refining centre for the battery supply chain outside the northern hemisphere.”
Renascor aims to become one of the largest suppliers of low cost, 100 per cent Australian-made, sustainable and ethically sourced PSG’s for the lithium-ion battery anode market, particularly within the electric vehicle supply chain.
POSCO, Australia’s largest export customer and one of South Korea’s largest conglomerates with a market capitalisation of over US$25billion, is the world’s largest steel-making company and one of the world’s largest suppliers of lithium-ion battery material.
Under the MOU framework, Renascor and POSCO will collaborate to undertake additional product validation with a view to concluding a formal and definitive agreement for the sale of PSG to POSCO and for potential further strategic cooperation between the two companies.
Renascor’s Managing Director, David Christensen, said they are delighted to be working with POSCO, who have an established track record of working with Australian companies.
“The significant off-take requirements from POSCO represent a transformational step change for Renascor, as the demand from POSCO, including our existing off-take partners, not only fulfils our current capacity, but also warrants PSG capacity expansions through an increase of Stage 1 and an expanded Stage 2,” Mr Christensen said.
“The exceptional demand for Siviour PSG places Renascor in a strong position as we progress towards binding off-take agreements.”