POSCO FLOW

▲ From the left, Vice Minister Ki-doo Eom from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF), POSCO FLOW CEO Kwang-soo Kim, Bong-ki Jo, Managing Director of Korea Shipowners’ Association (KSA), and Chairman of KSA Tae-soon Chung.

POSCO FLOW, a logistics arm of the POSCO Group, and Korea Shipowners’ Association (KSA) signed an Agreement for Mutually Beneficial Cooperation and Sustainable Shared Prosperity at KSA in Yeouido, Seoul on Apr 8, 2022. The signing ceremony was attended by multiple guests including Vice Minister Ki-doo Eom from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF). 

In this agreement, the two sides have agreed to propose best practices of mutually beneficial cooperation between shipowners and shippers on behalf of the POSCO Group and the shipping industry and mutually enhance the competitiveness in sea transportation, thereby contributing to advancement in national competitiveness. 

More specifically, the agreement specifies the following: △Cooperation in providing the finest transportation services based on the expanded use of domestic shipping companies; △Consultation on distribution of export and import cargo carriers, and cooperation on increasing the loading rate of domestic ships; △Efforts to comply with the Marine Transportation Act and the Fair Trade Act and to conclude reasonable bidding contracts in line with market circumstances; and △Formation of a consultative body for shared prosperity aimed at strengthening the competitiveness in sea transportation and promotion of mutual exchange.

Vice Minister Eom said in his congratulatory remarks that, “We welcome the mutually beneficial cooperation agreement between the shipping industry and POSCO FLOW aimed at the development of maritime import and export logistics. The government will review how we can support the initiative so the efforts to cooperate and achieve shared prosperity would lead to advancement in the national economy.”

POSCO FLOW CEO Kwang-soo Kim said, “Building on our mutual trust based on our long-term partnership, we will discover and disseminate diverse best practices and grow alongside the shipping industry to contribute to the advancement of Korean logistics industry.”

POSCO FLOW is a new name of POSCO Terminal, and is an integrated logistics service provider under the POSCO Group. Founded in 2003, POSCO FLOW has been engaged in the central terminal system (CTS) business based in Pohang, Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gwangyang, Jeollanam-do. CTS is a system that imports cargo from overseas on large carriers and unloads, stores, and processes them for delivery to customers.

The POSCO Group has been integrating the logistic business of different companies within the group since 2020 to cut down on logistics expenses. The original plan was to start a new company altogether, but when faced with a backlash from the maritime transport sector that argued the new company will be a stepping stone for the large conglomerate to enter the ocean transport sector, POSCO has decided to add the logistics function into a subsidiary, POSCO Terminal, as an alternative.