POSCO Expands Lithium Supply Chain With Australia-Argentina Deals

POSCO Holdings, Inc. PKX recently announced a total investment of KRW 1.1 trillion to secure premium lithium resources in Australia and Argentina, strengthening its raw-material supply base for the fast-growing secondary battery materials sector. This move aligns with POSCO Group’s broader battery-materials strategy, which focuses on rapidly securing high-grade global lithium assets to improve cost efficiency and ensure a reliable supply chain for future production. 

On Nov. 11, the company approved a plan to acquire a 30% stake in a newly formed intermediate holding company under Mineral Resources, a major Australian mining firm. The transaction is valued at approximately $765 million, or around KRW 1 trillion. 

POSCO Expands Lithium Supply and Mining Ventures

POSCO Holdings will gain stable annual access to 270,000 tons of lithium concentrate from Mineral Resources’ leading assets, the Wodgina and Mt. Marion mines in Western Australia. This volume, reflecting planned production expansion at both sites, can be converted into roughly 37,000 tons of lithium hydroxide, sufficient to support the production of batteries for around 860,000 electric vehicles. 

The equity investment not only secures long-term supply but also grants POSCO Holdings involvement in mine operations and future dividend income. The company also plans to scale its participation in lithium concentrate refining as the market matures and enters a phase of sustained growth. 

POSCO Holdings is accelerating the buildup of its brine-based lithium portfolio. On Nov. 5, it committed $65 million (approximately KRW 95 billion) to acquire all shares of Lithium South’s Argentine subsidiary. This acquisition provides additional mining rights within the Hombre Muerto salt lake—one of the world’s highest-grade brine lithium regions. 

The company emphasized that securing strong raw-material competitiveness is crucial for POSCO’s goal of becoming the global leader in lithium, adding that the group will continue to broaden and diversify its international lithium supply chain. The leadership at Mineral Resources also expressed support for the expanded partnership, noting that the collaboration, which began with the Onslow iron ore project, has now successfully grown into the lithium sector. 

Shares of PKX are up 24% year to date compared with the industry’s 33.3% rise. 

PKX’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

PKX currently carries a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell). 

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Commercial Metals Company CMC, Coeur Mining, Inc. CDE and Fortuna Mining Corp. FSM. CMC sports a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) while CDE and FSM carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CMC’s fiscal 2026 earnings is pegged at $5.31 per share, indicating a 70% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice, with an average negative earnings surprise of 6.3%. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CDE’s current-year earnings is pegged at 91 cents per share, indicating a 406% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice, with an average surprise of 107%. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FSM’s current-year earnings is pegged at 83 cents per share, indicating an 80.4% year-over-year increase. The Consensus Estimates have been trending higher over the past 60 days. 

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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