The 2024 Global Volunteer Week, POSCO’s special volunteer service event, was held from May 23 to 31. More than 20,000 POSCO employees in Korea and other countries participated in large-scale volunteer work to practice sharing. POSCO Newsroom has taken vivid photos of the volunteer activities carried out by overseas subsidiary employees worldwide. Let’s meet them!

▲ The center director of POSCO-TNPC and eight employees made and delivered a donation set (including a 2-month supply of diapers) to support low-income families such as single mothers and disabled children at the Women’s Support Center in Bursa. It was meaningful in that the costs of the donated sets were funded by savings in electricity bills and costs associated with replacing the company’s LEDs and purchasing waste paper collection boxes.

▲ POSCO-ASSAN TST employees visited a kindergarten near its head office, created a new playground using waste wood, and performed environmental improvement by repainting old play equipment.

▲ POSCO-PWPC visited a nearby organization for disabled children and held an event to promote Korean culture through Korean language classes. The 10 participating employees communicated with the children by teaching them simple Korean greetings and writing their names in Korean.

▲ Four POSCO-Brazil employees conducted environmental cleanup activities at Bosque de Barra Park in downtown Rio de Janeiro on May 28.

▲ POSCO-Mexico employees volunteered to make bread at the Hope Center in downtown Altamira with officials from the Tamaulipas State Department of Welfare. This volunteer activity was especially meaningful in that employees and their families participated.

▲ Employees of four POSCO-MPPC factories carried out various volunteer activities for nine days. Employees of Factory 1 visited a local daycare center, painted classroom walls and floors, and cleaned vegetables and fruits to be delivered to nearby neighbors in need at a food bank. Employees of Factory 2 visited the government agency DIF and donated walkers, canes, and computers. They also visited a public kindergarten and donated playground equipment and computers. Employees of Factory 3 painted a government-supported soup kitchen, and those of Factory 4 visited a local orphanage and donated chairs.

▲ POSCO-MVWPC’s 42 employees visited a local school to paint the exterior walls of the school buildings and replace floor tiles, creating comfortable areas throughout the school to encourage students’ learning activities.

▲ All 52 employees of the AAPC Factory in the United States collected waste around each business site as part of their environmental cleanup activities.

▲ POSCO-America’s nine employees visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery to pay their respects and collected trash around the tombstone.

▲ POSCO-Australia employees held a joint event with KCCA, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and discussed plans for charity activities, and 55 members and their families participated in a charity walking competition to support children with neuroblastoma and completed a 5-kilometer walking course.

▲ POSCO-Western Australia employees conducted environmental cleanup by collecting trash around the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Kings Park, Perth, Western Australia and cleaned pollutants from the monument.

▲ Thirty-five members of the Mexican Trading Corporation’s volunteer group visited a child and youth protection center in Mexico City, donated various items, and interacted with the children by playing piñata, a traditional Mexican game. (Right) Eight members of the POSCO International Mexico Motor Core Corporation visited a nearby elementary school, presented a first aid kit, cleaning supplies, and school supply sets, and held a tree planting ceremony.

▲ (Left) Nine members of a volunteer group at POSCO International Brazil’s Sao Paulo office donated relief goods for recovery from a flood to victims of heavy rain in Ihu Grande do Sul, Brazil. (Right) Eleven members of the POSCO International BA branch’s volunteer group donated daily necessities and served dinner to low-income and disabled families in a slum in Buenos Aires.

▲ (Left) Eight members of the Bogota branch visited the Red Cross in Bogota and practiced love for their neighbors by donating blood. (Right) Five members of the Panama branch’s volunteer group visited the Panama Canal Miraflores Visitor Center to collect trash and carry out environmental cleanup activities.

▲ Volunteer groups at the German and Italian trading corporations visited a park near the head office and carried out environmental cleanup activities.

▲One hundred and nineteen members of the Uzbek Cotton Corporation’s volunteer group carried out environmental cleaning activities inside and outside the corporation’s factory and around the Fergana region.

▲ (Left) Five members of the Dammam branch’s volunteer group visited nearby Al Khor Beach and carried out environmental cleanup activities on the shore by collecting trash discarded by tourists. (Right) Six members of the Cairo branch’s volunteer group planted 20 lemon trees and 20 pomegranate trees around El Horreya Women’s Hospital.

▲ Eight members of the Johannesburg branch’s volunteer group carried out environmental cleanup activities by picking up trash around the branch office and removing fallen leaves that had been neglected for a long time.

▲ Eleven members of the Tokyo head office’s volunteer group planted flowers in flower beds at nearby Tsukiji River Ginza Park, cleaned up the area around the park, visited a senior center to clean balconies and windows on each floor and organized the garden.

▲ Members of the Osaka branch’s volunteer group visited a nearby orphanage and provided necessary items such as strollers, car seats, and rice and served meals to the homeless in the park.

▲ (Left) Thirteen members of the Nagoya branch’s volunteer group carried out environmental cleanup activities in the Nagoya Castle area. (Right) Twenty-six members of the Beijing branch’s volunteer group visited a nearby senior welfare center to donate necessary items, make meat dumplings, and serve a warm dinner to local seniors living alone.

▲ (Left) Five members of the Qingdao branch’s volunteer group visited a nearby cherry farm, helped with the harvest, purchased cherries produced by the farm, and donated them to a local nursing home. (Right) Six members of the Wuhan branch’s volunteer group visited a childcare facility and presented daily necessities and study materials to the children.

▲ (Left) POSCO-CORE’s volunteer group visited the Yanzi Lake’s Ecological Park near the company and carried out environmental cleanup activities. (Right) Forty-five members of PT. BIA’s volunteer group collected trash around the residences of Papua Palm Farm employees and maintained drainage channels.

▲ (Left) Eleven members of the Labor-Management Council-PT. BIA corporation’s volunteer group donated children’s art supplies to a kindergarten near the company. (Right) Five members of PT. KPE’s volunteer group delivered donations needed to cook lunch boxes to Sewan Village in Indonesia and then participated in cooking.

▲(Left) Twelve members of the Indonesia E&P Corporation’s volunteer group visited a major park in Jakarta and carried out environmental cleanup activities, collecting various types of trash. (Right) Twenty members of the MPCC volunteer group of the Myanmar PRC Corporation and hotel corporation donated 35 sacks of rice and towels for two months to Agape Orphanage Center and carried out residential environment improvement activities by replacing old roofs.

▲(Left) One hundred and twenty-nine members of the Gas Field Operations Office’s volunteer group visited the Yangon Education Center for the Blind and donated braille printing paper, shampoo, toothpaste, and various snacks. (Right) Thirteen members of the Singapore Trading Corporation’s volunteer group carried out volunteer work at the Lions Befrienders Senior Welfare Center by packing and donating goodie bags containing daily necessities such as ramen, canned food, biscuits, and toiletries.

▲(Left) Ten members of the Indian Motor Core corporation’s volunteer group provided snacks and school supplies to boarding schools for children from single-parent and low-income families. Twelve members of the Manila branch’s volunteer group carried out environmental cleanup activities at Manila Baywalk Dolomite Beach. (Right) Seven members of the Sydney branch’s volunteer group participated in activities to remove parasitic trees and preserve native trees to protect the forest at the Field of Mars Reserve in Sydney.

Although the regions, environments, and languages ​​are different,
the hearts of POSCO Group executives and employees have become one through ‘sharing.’
POSCO Group’s volunteer activities for coexistence with the local community will continue in the future.
We ask for your interest and support!

Set to begin operations in the second half of 2025, with an initial order of 1.03 million units from Hyundai and Kia for their European production

Aims for an annual production capacity of 7.5 million units and over 10 percent of the global market share by 2030

POSCO INTERNATIONAL (CEO Lee Kye-In) is setting up a production base for the European electric vehicle (EV)market this year, following its expansion into the North American market last year.

On the 11th (local time), a groundbreaking ceremony for the new traction motor core plant (PI-PEM: Posco International Poland e-Mobility) was held in Brzeg, Opole Voivodeship, Poland.

The event was attended by Opole Marshal Andrzej Bula, Brzeg Mayor Violetta Jaskolska-Palus, Korean Ambassador to Poland Lim Hoon-Min, POSCO INTERNATIONAL Green Industry Business Head Lee Young-Woo, and others.

The new plant, which will occupy a 100,000m² site, is expected to be completed by mid-2025 and will commence full-scale operations in the second half of 2025 with its initial project focusing on producing 1.03 million traction motor cores for Hyundai and Kia’ locally produced EVs in Europe.

Looking ahead, POSCO INTERNATIONAL plans to target major European EV manufacturers and build a production system for 1.2 million traction motor cores annually at the Poland plant alone by 2030.

This new plant will be part of its global production cluster for traction motor cores, which includes locations in Pohang and Cheonan in Korea, as well as in Mexico, India, and Poland.

By securing local production bases in key economic regions such as East Asia, Southwest Asia, North America, and Europe, the company has apparently eliminated the risk of tariff barriers due to increasing protectionism.

Contrary to recent concerns about the EV craze, the green car market continues to grow. According to the European Automobile Industry Association (ACEA), hybrid vehicle sales in Europe reached 3.41 million units in 2023, which is up 28% from 2022, with EV sales growing at a similar rate.

The European Union (EU) has announced a total ban on the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035. The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) predicts that European EV sales will increase to 5.4 million units by 2025 and 10.6 million units by 2030, considering the EU’s carbon neutrality policy.

In particular, the traction motor core is a key component of the drive control system in almost all types of eco-friendly vehicles, except conventional internal combustion engine vehicles, and its demand is expected to continue growing in the future.

In response, the company plans to strengthen its position as a global supplier of eco-friendly mobility parts by establishing an annual global production capacity of 7.5 million units by 2030, aiming for a 10% market share.

“It is significant that we have secured a production base in Europe, which is at the forefront of the eco-friendly automobile industry after Asia and North America,” said a POSCO INTERNATIONAL official. “We will further collaborate with major European automakers to become a leading eco-friendly mobility parts company in the world.”

Last November, the company obtained permission to use the waste-to-energy plant from developer Krakow Communal Holding. It completed construction and trial operations over seven months before transferring the facility to the developer on June 28.

On June 28, POSCO E&C completed construction of a waste-to-energy plant in Krakow, Poland. The plant will not only process 220,000 tons of household waste annually but will also produce and supply electricity and district heating.

The waste-to-energy plant of Krakow is the largest daily waste-incineration facility in Poland, capable of processing 220,000 tons of household waste annually in an eco-friendly way. By using the heat from incineration, it will produce 11 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity and supply 35MWh of district heating. Also, the ash from the waste incineration, after undergoing a screening process, will be used as a road construction material.

Now that the facility has been completed, the city of Krakow will be able to simultaneously meet EU requirements concerning waste disposal and sell the generated electricity at a higher price by obtaining Green Energy certification from the government.

POSCO E&C was praised for its contributions to expanding construction plans when it won the contract for the waste-to-energy plant in October 2012 despite competition from companies renowned for their advanced incineration technology, including CNIM of France, KEPPEL of Belgium and HITACHI of Japan.

For three and a half years, the construction site was well managed by POSCO E&C according to the strict environmental standards of Poland. As a result, Krakow’s Department of Labor Safety and Environment Inspection and Regional Environmental Protection Agency found no violations in their safety inspection, recognizing it as an accident-free site.

The waste-to-energy plant of Krakow was presented with the SARP Award of the Year in 2015, which is given by the Association of Polish Architects and recognizes industry-leading building designs.

Also, it was selected as one of the “Top 10 Outstanding Public Investment Projects 2016”—a list that is determined by citizens’ evaluation of the public policies and projects of Poland’s central and local governments.

“I have been deeply impressed by POSCO E&C’s technology and its ability to implement such strict management of the site,” stated Tadeusz Trzmiel, Deputy Mayor of Krakow. “I appreciate how wonderfully they have constructed the cutting edge facility, which will be responsible for protecting our environment.”

“The successful construction of the waste-to-energy plant in Krakow has raised the status of the nation’s construction industry to a higher level, and is expected to become a solid foundation for POSCO E&C to enter into the environment market of Poland and Eastern Europe,” POSCO E&C CEO Han Chan-kun noted.

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POSCO Group University: Helping Employees in Overseas Offices to Become Global Leaders

POSCO Group University is dedicated to improving the abilities of the company’s employees working in both local and overseas offices. The goal of POSCO Group University is to lead these employees on the road to becoming global leaders. Among the programs that specifically aim to enhance the abilities of POSCO’s global colleagues are the POSCO Cultural Innovator Program and the Global Junior Executive Development Program. These programs invite overseas employees to the Global R&D Center located at Songdo, Incheon, during which the participants eat, sleep, and learn together for an intensive two weeks.

On June 30, 43 employees from 22 offices in 13 countries participated in the programs, with 22 in the Global Junior Executive Development Program and 21 in the Cultural Innovator Program. Shall we take a closer look at the curriculum that these 43 global talents experienced?

Be Proactive: POSCO Cultural Innovator Program

The POSCO Cultural Innovator Program trains employees to establish a localized education system that spreads POSCO’s unique values and corporate culture. Participants of the program return to their respective offices to actively implement new systems and plan and develop a unique culture of their own instead of simply relaying the contents provided during the program.

Having an interest for others is the first step in truly understanding different cultures. Participants of the Cultural Innovator Program had a chance to learn ways to solve problems and overcome disagreements caused by cultural misunderstanding. They also freely shared their experiences and hardships they had to overcome as employees working in an unfamiliar Korean culture.

Interview: Dominika Gracz / Team Leader / POSCO-PWPC (Poland)

I learned a lot about the process of executing a project. I’ll definitely have a better idea of managing a project when I go back to Poland. Also, it was a great opportunity to talk with people from other countries and share our different cultures and experiences. I think the networks we established during the program will be beneficial in exchanging work-related ideas and information in the future. 

Interview: Massimo Menghini / Sr. Manager / POSCO-ITPC S.P.A (Italy)

It was an opportunity to learn and improve together with colleagues from various different countries. Along with my global colleagues, I was able to learn how to manage projects and solve problems. Also, it’s my first time to visit POSCO HQ. I’m looking forward to going back and sharing with my colleagues at my office in Italy the unique POSCO culture I’ve experienced here.

Global Junior Executive Development Program

Through the Global Junior Executive Development Program, POSCO takes a proactive step in training its overseas junior executives to become global leaders of the future. Team leaders who participate in the program prepare to become exemplary managers by honing their leadership skills and practicing management problem-solving. Participants also experience firsthand real issues presented by the branch managers of each overseas office, an activity that strengthens management capabilities. Because of the high quality and benefits of the program, more and more overseas branch managers are looking for a chance to participate.

One of the main activities in the program is the Action Learning Mentoring session. Before arriving at Songdo, employees received from their office heads tasks related to overcoming cultural differences and enhancing leadership skills. Participants analyzed these tasks beforehand, and solved the problems through two weeks of Action Learning Mentoring.

Interview: Hyun-chul Bong / Professor & Program Instructor / Jeonbuk University School of Business

These people are potential future global leaders, so the learning sessions aimed to improve crucial management and leadership skills. Before coming to the program, the participants were given a wide array of unique individual tasks which covered product quality issues, productivity issues, and logistic issues. Although the participants are from different offices and factories, they were all able to relate to each other quite easily because in the end, the work they are doing are similar. It was wonderful to see them interacting with one another freely, giving advice and asking questions.

Interview: Hoang Anh Le / Team Leader / POSCO E&C VN (Vietnam)

We were able to solve many real problems we face at our respective offices thanks to the useful concepts and problem solving tools the professor provided us.

Learning the History of POSCO

After a week since the programs began, the participants were invited to a special tour of the history of POSCO. For many of them, it was the first time to visit the POSCO HQ and get a firsthand experience of the company. Leaded by a guide, the participants enjoyed a meaningful time learning about the history and corporate philosophy of POSCO.

Interview: Santosh Kumar / Sr. Manager / POSCO-India

The tour on the history of POSCO was very comprehensive; I learned not only about the history of the company but also about the history of the steel industry in Korea as well. There were a lot of resources about the late president Mr. Tae-jun Park. I respect him for founding such an impressive business and am proud to work here. POSCO is truly a great company.

Epilogue: Completion Ceremony

The participants of the POSCO Cultural Innovator Program and the Global Junior Executive Development Program gathered at the conference hall where they first met each other two weeks ago. The 43 participants congratulated one another as they received a certificate to commemorate the completion of the intensive programs.

Interview: Brett McCleary / Manager / POSCO-AAPC (US)

It was a very meaningful experience: I learned a lot about POSCO core values and the history of POSCO which was very interesting to me. I also learned a lot of different HRD strategies that I can use when I go back to my home country. It frankly is kind of a relief; it was a lot of work! But it was very enjoyable to meet some great people and learn a little about everybody’s culture, and I feel that’s going to help me when I go back to deal with the different cultures that we do have at our office.

Interview: Potjaman Khongthon / Associate / POSCO-Thainox (Thailand)

The presentation skills to be an insightful instructor would be good for me because I will go back and give a lecture for my colleagues at my office in Thailand. I think I can be a better instructor because I have learned new techniques, and I am thankful for the company for providing me with such a great opportunity. The conversations I had with my global colleagues will definitely belong with me for a long time.

POSCO is taking active steps to train future global leaders through a systematic training program.  We hope to see our global employees go back to their countries and continue their efforts to make POSCO a truly global company. Please look forward for many other efforts that POSCO is making in order to become a great company to work at!