A group of dignitaries including 2nd Vice Minister Lee Kwan-sub of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, CEOs of steel makers, Vice Chairman Woo Yoo-cheol of Hyundai Steel, Chairman Chang Sae-joo of Dongkuk Steel Group, Chairman Lee Soon-hyung of SeAH Steel and Chairman Kwon Oh-joon of Korea Iron and Steel Association, hold a toast to wish for a Happy New Year for the steel industry this year at a ceremony held at POSCO Center in Seoul on Jan. 12.(Photos:POSCO)

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the steel industry held a New Year’s ceremony at the POSCO Center on Jan. 12, where some 200 government officials and the CEOs of steel makers were present.

Second Vice Minister Lee Kwan-sub said in his speech that the steel industry should build a high value-added steel manufacturing structure this year to make the industry more competitive in the global steel market. He also said the industry should take advantage of the free trade agreements that Korea signed with a number of key market countries in the world including the EU, the U.S., Canada, Australia and China to expand steel product exports this year. He also said the steel industry should also develop the technologies for environmental friendly steel production process and solve environmental problems with the ministry to do all it can to help the steel industry to fight its problems.

The government will encourage the free reform of the steel manufacturing sector, the development of new technologies to the improved KS standards, the development of metal materials for next generation power plants, and other multi-functional materials.

The second vice minister also called on the steel industry to take advantage of FTAs to either export its steel products or make investments in foreign countries that signed FTAs with Korea. The government will provide them with support whenever they need it, the vice minister said in such areas the development of new environmentally friendly technologies for steel production. The government will also help the steel industry secure the technologies to produce integrated titanium materials and set up a strategy for the establishment of an ecological system for the integrated titanium materials, an industrial engine project of the Creative Economy, said Choi Tae-hyun, director-general of the Materials and Components Industries of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Also present at the ceremony was Yang Byung-nae, chief of the Metals and Chemicals Division of the ministry.

In his speech at the ceremony, Chairman Kwon Oh-joon of the Korea Iron and Steel Association called on the government, the industries that require steel products for their businesses, and regional communities to create a framework for the continued growth of the steel industry. The steel industry will do all it can to develop its own steel-making technologies under segregated strategies. 

Among the CEOs of steel making companies present at the ceremony included Chairman Chang Sae-joo of Dongkuk Steel Group, and Vice Chairman Woo Yoo-cheol of Hyundai Steel and Chairman Lee Soon-hyung of SeAH Steel, among others.

Kwon also called on the government to revise the carbon output rights so that Chinese steel products cannot be priced lower as China doesn’t honor the carbon exposure rights. He said the establishment of a border tax may be needed to restrict the Chinese steel products imported into Korea.

He also said a good idea to reform carbon exposure rights is the financial burden from the carbon exposure rights that may be returned to the concerned companies in the form of R&D expenses.

Chairman Chang of Dongkuk Steel Group said the steel industry requested the Ministry of Environment to increase the carbon exposure rights for the steel industry, but the results have been well below what the industry expected. He went on to note that unless the carbon volume is increased further under the carbon exposure right, the steel industry’s competitive edge would be weakened.

According to the KISA, the steel industry asked for 327 million tons of carbon, but the government only allocated 306 million tons, far below the requested amount. 

POSCO Chairman Kwon said restructuring is the most urgent matter for this year for all affiliates of POSCO Group, except POSCO.