POSCO started production at its newest steel mill utilizing state-of-the-art technology known as "Finex." The new plant is capable of producing 1.5 million tons of steel each year using the innovative technology, which allows the production of molten iron directly from iron ore fines and non-coking coal. The new Finex process provides a superior alternative to existing blast furnaces.
There has been much progress in steel manufacturing technology since Germany's Krupp first developed the Bessemer process in 1869. But there has been virtually no change in the technology to produce pig iron for the last 100 years, since the furnace method was developed in England in the late 19th century.
POSCO's revolutionary Finex technology has changed the basic furnace structure. It has solved the previous problem of having to process iron through sintering and coke-making, rather than producing it by putting iron ore fines and non-coking coal directly into a furnace.
The greatest significance of the Finex plant is that POSCO has taken the lead for the first time in the technology race with its Japanese and other foreign rivals. The feat was made possible through the efforts of the Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology based in Pohang and POSCO's own R&D center. Since it began steel production in 1973, POSCO had to rely on modifying foreign manufacturing technology, even though the Korean company posted the highest profitability among global steelmakers.
Compared to traditional blast furnaces, Finex facilities are about 20 percent cheaper to build and they produce steel for about 15 percent less. The new system is also more environmentally sound, emitting about 3 percent of the sulfur oxides and 1 percent of the nitrogen produced by blast furnaces.
POSCO will not only be able to enhance its price competitiveness through the Finex technology, but also place itself in a more advantageous position in overseas markets. POSCO’s dream of becoming a global steel giant is now coming true. That dream began when ground breaking took place on a vast sandy plain in 1968.
