Photo: Dr. Chang Ho Kwag with Orissadiary Editor Rashmi R. Parida (in his left) & Asst. Editor K.K.Dash (in his right) POSCO coming to Orissa has been a major development in the history of the state. What made POSCO to think Orissa as a destination? Any MNC would like to come to a growing market. Similarly we have Brazil, China and India in mind. Choosing India is a conscious decision. Indo-Korea Relations is in upswing. Indian Steel Policy is a major attraction. Orissa has good quantity iron ore and is comparatively of better quality than China. Coming to India and Orissa stands out on account of three important factors such as POSCO’s Global Strategy of Expansion, Orissa’s rich Iron Ore and the Coastal line of Orissa.

Is it a part of becoming a global player? How do you see the Indian steel market vis-à-vis the Korean market?

Yes. POSCO wants to be a global player. POSCO is the fourth largest and growing. Korea has reached at a near saturation point in matters of steel consumption. We need to explore new destinations.
India is a growing economy and it would need and rely more and more on steel in the days to come. India has rich iron ore deposits and unless properly utilized the time is not far when India has to export iron ore and import steel. So it is better advised to have technologically advanced steel industry inside. POSCO has a history of quality in technology and production and moreover the POSCO CSR policy has got international acclaim.

The situation here is quite different from Korea and it is learnt POSCO has made several plans on the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Would you please share that how you got the insight to Indian situation in matters of CSR?

POSCO thought of making a comprehensive Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy and for this we wanted it to be done by the best in the sector. Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) was a natural choice.

In Korea generally CSR activities start after the operation takes off. But here in India we are intrigued to find Tata’s unique approach and commitment to CSR.  The Tatas have Trusts, high quality educational and research institutions.  In this line of thought we have suggested the POSCO to start our activities as early as possible.

There has been some opposition and protests to the POSCO project. Did you have any thought ever in your mind that such situations can surface?

We in Korea have had protests during the projects initially, both in the cases of Pohang and Gwanyang steel plant projects. Later on they died down and they saw qualitative difference that we brought to the steel industry of Korea. Our CSR has been also a responsive one. Yes we had made up our mind that situation would not be the same so some difficulty would naturally be in India. But situation has been at times beyond our thought and have been also quite challenging and difficult. However, we are confident to sail through these times.

What have been your activities and offers in India so far?

In the last one year we at POSCO have diversified our activities from business liaison to research, academics, educational fellowships and scholarships. We have our offices at Bhubaneswar and Delhi. Our seriousness in the involvement of the project should be taken note of.