POSCO Holdings Inc.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. The 2023 Q1 earnings release conference call will now begin. Postco Holdings will first present, which will be followed by a Q&A session with the participants. Please press star and one to ask questions. Postco Holdings will now present.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I am Jeong Gi-Seob, CSO of Postco Holdings. First and foremost, I would like to extend my gratitude to all the investors for your keen and lasting interest in Postco Holdings. Today's earnings call is joined by key executives from Postco Holdings, as well as from major subsidiaries, including Postco, Postco International, and Postco Future M. Last September, Pusko Group underwent an unprecedented natural disaster as Pohang Steel Mill was hit with typhoon Hinanur and was flooded as a result. But thanks to the efforts and hard work of the people at Pusko Holdings as well as the partners, vendors and customers, we miraculously completed recovery in 135 days and reopened for normal operation as of January 20th this year. Consequently, steel business returned to the black in Q1 from a deficit of $713.8 billion in Q4 last year. And on top of that, we laid the foundation for additional performance improvements for Q2. Even in times of recovery from the natural disaster, our investment for post-growth group did not stop. We invested in electric arc furnaces to roll out low-carbon products from 2026 in order to transition to an eco-friendly green production system. Furthermore, we spent our product portfolio to include hyper-NO and cylindrical battery materials for EVs to respond to the growth of the EV industry. Through these measures, we believe we can generate demand in the next and new future growth sectors. The secondary battery materials business also saw some positive developments. In Q1 this year, green materials business sales jumped 44% Q1Q and posted once again a record high quarterly sales. Argentina brine project phase one is well underway with the plant and brine pond now complete and mechanical and electric works initiating this April. A few days ago, with regard to the seawater, rather saltwater, the lithium construction project phase two, we obtained approval and license from both the state of Salta and Catamarca. Presco Pilbara Lithium Solution, a hard lithium mineral player, now has its headquarters building and sub-center completed, and MNE Works commenced in April. It is moving forward in line with the timetable for scheduled commercial operation. Postco Holdings is committed to do its utmost to ensure growth as a leading green materials business and subsequently to enhance shareholder value. Next, I would like to share with the shareholders and investors our midterm shareholder return policy, which will be effective for three years until 2025. Please turn to page 18 of the pre-read.

The company first disclosed its medium-term dividend payout ratio in January 2020, and over the next three years, it paid out dividends and retired shares to return a total of 3.4 trillion Korean won to the shareholders. The next three years' shareholder return plan is as follows. As a leading eco-friendly materials company, Posco Holdings seeks to boost corporate value and maintain a steady dividend payout by pushing for business growth. As Posco Holdings shifted to a holding company in 2022, it unveiled its 2030 growth strategy to increase shareholder value. To this end, for the next three years, the company will build a global production system for its secondary battery materials business, such as lithium. Through years of hard work and experience, the management is confident that investing in these new growth businesses will further boost corporate value. During 2023 to 2025, for three years, the company will return 50% to 60% of its free cash flow to equity to the shareholders. Also, to ensure that dividends are highly predictable, a basic dividend policy of $10,000 per share will be introduced so that shareholders can receive steady dividends even in the midst of uncertainty. Quarterly dividends will be paid out as before, and during the General Shareholders' Meeting in March, the Articles of Incorporation will be revised to preemptively adopt the Dividend Confirmation First, Record Date Later program to enhance shareholder value. Dear Shareholders, Uncertainty in the global economy remains, and the regulatory environment keeps changing rapidly, as can be seen from IRA and CBAM. To this end, Postco Group launched emergency operations. The group will continue to focus on its strategic core business while responding to the changing business environment in a proactive and agile manner to meet the shareholders' expectations. Next, the head of the IR team will report on the earnings release of Q1 2023.