'Speed is the key to survival': Posco Group chair rallies executives behind Triple Core strategy

Posco Group Chairman Jang In-hwa gathered all of the group's executives to press for faster execution of the "Triple Core" strategy spanning steel, lithium and energy. Having laid out the blueprint in July, the focus this time shifted to finding concrete answers: where to invest and which markets to target first.

Posco Group held the "2026 Posco Forum" Thursday and Friday at the Posco Global R&D Center in Songdo, Incheon, under the theme "Seize future value on a new competitive playing field."

The Posco Forum is a gathering where group executives discuss the medium- to long-term business environment and growth strategies. This year's discussions centered on strengthening the execution of Triple Core — a unified growth strategy linking steel as an industrial resource, lithium, cathode materials, anode materials and rare earths as strategic resources, and LNG and renewable energy as energy resources.

Underlying the push is a recognition that relying on steel alone will not sustain long-term growth. At the CEO Investor Day in July, Posco Group unveiled plans to restructure its business portfolio by maintaining steel competitiveness while expanding the profit contribution from resources and energy.

The targets are ambitious. The group aims to grow combined sales from 116 trillion won ($85.7 billion) last year to 187 trillion won by 2035, and to lift operating profit from 2.2 trillion won to 13.1 trillion won over the same period. To achieve this, the group plans to invest a total of 29.1 trillion won between 2026 and 2028.

"In a period of great transformation — where geopolitical realignment and technological paradigm shifts are redrawing the competitive landscape — speed of execution is the key to survival," Jang said. "To complete the Triple Core strategy and successfully expand into a resource-centered business, we must read the direction of change ahead of others and find clear answers to what we need to prepare and how quickly we can adapt." He added: "Let us open a new path to growth through bold goals and decisive action."

The key priorities Jang set out at the forum were localizing the steel business, securing early positions in key markets for lithium and rare earths, and strengthening the energy business as a buffer. Given that market conditions and growth stages differ across each business, he called for differentiated growth strategies tailored to each area rather than a single formula applied across the board.

The Triple Core initiative is already moving into the investment and financing phase. Posco Holdings this month raised 2.5 trillion won by disposing of some of its stakes in POSCO International and Posco DX, retaining only enough to maintain management control and monetizing the excess holdings. The proceeds are earmarked for investment in future strategic resources such as lithium.

The forum was organized around three sessions: how the competitive landscape is changing, where and how to compete and grow, and how to see the transition through to completion. External expert lectures, conversations and panel discussions examined shifts in the global industrial order and cases of corporate portfolio restructuring.

The keynote address was delivered by Dominic Barton, board chairman of global mining company Rio Tinto. He examined how geopolitical and technological changes affect corporate value and presented cases of global companies that achieved growth by restructuring their business portfolios or concentrating investment in core operations.

Physical AI — connecting artificial intelligence directly to manufacturing equipment — was also a major agenda item. Posco Group reviewed how to apply autonomous manufacturing technology, in which production facilities make independent judgments and adjustments based on data, across business sites including steel operations, with plans to identify medium-term implementation tasks going forward.

Based on the discussions at the forum, Posco Group said it will set priorities for each Triple Core business and draw up specific execution plans.