l Promotes joint research on the application of new raw material ‘iron ore briquette’
l Reviews the use of iron ore ‘pellet’ and quality improvement measures to reduce carbon emissions
POSCO signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Brazilian raw material supplier, Vale on November 4 and agreed to jointly research the application and use of new raw materials that can reduce carbon emissions.
▲ Hag-dong Kim, POSCO’s Head of Steel Business Unit, and Marcello Spinelli, Vale’s Executive Vice President for Ferrous Minerals signed a MOU to develop decarbonization solutions by attending a virtual signing ceremony on November 4th.
Vale, Brazil’s largest raw material supplier, has been supplying major raw materials such as iron ore to POSCO for more than 40 years.
Through the agreement, the two companies decided to conduct joint research to achieve carbon neutrality including △ research on how to apply a new raw material, iron ore briquette of POSCO, and △ reviewing the use and the quality improvement measures of pellets.
The iron ore briquette, which the two companies have decided to study together, is a new raw material that has been agglomerated by putting fine iron ore into a molding frame and is expected to be able to replace raw materials used in the steelmaking process such as sintered ore, lump ore, and pellets. It is expected that carbon emission generated in the sintering process can be reduced because iron ore briquette can be directly injected into the blast furnace without a sintering process using fossil fuels.
The two companies also agreed to cooperate on iron ore pellets, a major raw material for reducing carbon emissions. Vale, the world’s largest pellet supplier plans to conduct various researches such as improving pellet quality through cooperation between the two companies.
Hag-dong Kim, POSCO’s Head of Steel Business Unit said, “Both companies have the same goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. This is a very important social responsibility required by the times and a task that must be fulfilled as a member of society. We expect that there will be greater synergy when Vale and POSCO cooperate.”
Marcello Spinelli, Vale’s Executive Vice President for Ferrous Minerals said, “The steel and mining industries are already undergoing major changes in response to decarbonization, and we are very happy to be with POSCO on this journey. The implementation of decarbonization under the Paris Agreement is a very important legacy for future generations and Vale is well-positioned to lead the industry with our high-quality and world-class portfolio and with innovative technologies.”
In December 2020, POSCO declared the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Since then, it has been promoting carbon-neutral cooperation with various stakeholders including raw material suppliers such as Vale and plans to continue its efforts to achieve carbon-neutral goals in the future.