Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) announced on Thursday that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with POSCO Holdings’ Future Technology Research Institute at the Canadian Embassy in Seoul.

The MOU will involve jointly developing technologies for extracting key minerals such as lithium from the reservoirs of oil and gas fields as well as researching carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies.

The signing ceremony was attended by Kim Dong-sub, President of KNOC, Kim Ki-soo, Director of the POSCO Holdings Future Technology Research Institute, Tamara Mawhinney, Canadian Ambassador to South Korea, and Victor Lee, Alberta Government Representative in Korea.

Under the MOU, KNOC and POSCO Holdings will collaborate on developing technology to extract key minerals, including lithium, from KNOC’s reservoirs of oil and gas fields in Alberta, Canada.

Reservoirs surrounding oil or gas formations often contain minerals such as lithium. Alberta is known to have one of the world’s largest lithium reserves in its reservoirs, and global companies are exploring lithium extraction in spent oilfield reservoirs.

KNOC and POSCO Holdings plan to begin by conducting economic evaluations, including assessing the feasibility of extracting minerals such as lithium from reservoirs in the region’s oil and gas fields, while also collaborating on technological research to extract minerals.

KNOC will leverage its existing oil production facilities and accumulated expertise in petroleum exploration and development to identify areas with high lithium content.

As South Korea’s lithium dependency on China is close to 70 percent, both KNOC and POSCO Holdings anticipate that this collaborative effort, once fully implemented, will significantly contribute to diversifying supply chains and securing key minerals.

By Pulse

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