Traditional steelmaking uses coal to remove oxygen from iron ore, and that carbon leaves as CO₂. If hydrogen does the same job, the by-product is simply water. That one change could transform one of the world's most carbon-intensive industries, and it is the change POSCO is committed to making by 2050.
HyREX builds on POSCO's FINEX fluidized-bed heritage. It works with fine iron ore directly, with no pelletizing, reduces it with hydrogen, then melts it in an electric smelting furnace. Switch between the two processes to compare them.
Simplified process illustration.
POSCO is established in Pohang.
Pohang Works' first blast furnace comes online.
Proprietary ironmaking that becomes HyREX's foundation.
300,000 t/yr demonstration facility in Pohang.
Hydrogen reduction ready at commercial scale.
Blast furnaces at Pohang and Gwangyang converted to hydrogen.
Through the HyREX R&D Partnership, POSCO works with partners across the whole value chain, from raw materials to hydrogen supply, equipment and demonstration projects.
Iron ore suppliers test how their ore performs in the HyREX process.
Energy companies propose ways to produce, supply and use clean hydrogen.
Technology partners help develop reactors and electric smelting furnaces.
Scaling up together, from pilot to demonstration to commercial plants.
Hydrogen steelmaking will take time to scale. Customers need to cut carbon now. Greenable is POSCO's eco-brand for low-carbon steel products and solutions, and the bridge between today's steel and tomorrow's.
Bridge technologies on existing lines, such as more scrap and lower-carbon raw materials, already reduce the carbon in the steel we deliver.
Sustainability at POSCO covers more than carbon. It shapes how we treat people, communities and governance.
Carbon neutrality by 2050, cleaner air and water around our works, and a circular approach to by-products and scrap.
Safety first in every workplace, shared growth with suppliers, and lasting partnerships with local communities.
Transparent, accountable decision-making, with ethics and compliance at the centre.
Our latest sustainability disclosures, ready to download.
Our strategy, performance and targets across environment, social and governance.
Year-by-year environmental, social and governance indicators.
The milestones and technologies on our path to 2050.
HyREX is POSCO's hydrogen-reduction ironmaking technology. Fluidized-bed reactors use hydrogen to reduce fine iron ore into direct reduced iron, which is then melted in an electric smelting furnace. The by-product is water instead of CO₂.
Many hydrogen-based processes need processed iron ore pellets. HyREX is designed to use fine iron ore directly, building on POSCO's FINEX experience.
POSCO plans a 300,000-tonne-per-year demonstration plant in Pohang in 2028 and aims to have the technology ready at commercial scale by 2030.
Yes. Greenable, POSCO's eco-brand, offers low-carbon steel products and solutions now. Contact us to discuss your needs.