Seoul: POSCO Group, South Korea's leading steelmaker, announced a collaborative venture with Ningbo Ronbay New Energy, a prominent Chinese cathode-materials producer, to advance their efforts in lithium supply and spent-battery recycling. According to Yonhap News Agency, POSCO has formalized a strategic framework agreement with Ronbay to provide the Chinese company with hard-rock lithium sourced from Australia and brine lithium from Argentina. This agreement also includes the exploration of business opportunities in the recycling of spent batteries. POSCO aims to leverage its comprehensive lithium production value chain through this partnership, covering everything from raw materials to finished products, including lithium reclaimed from spent batteries. This collaboration is expected to facilitate the supply of battery-grade lithium to China, recognized as the world's largest producer of battery materials.