The recently deceased founder and honorary chairman of South Korea’s top steelmaker POSCO will be buried in the national cemetery in Seoul, a commission in charge of the funeral said Thursday.

The remains of Park Tae-joon will be laid to rest at Seoul National Cemetery in the southern part of the South Korean capital in recognition of his contribution to the country and the society, according to the commission.

Park Tae-joon died Tuesday of lung disease at the age of 84.

Park was regarded as the godfather of the country’s steel industry since he spearheaded a project to build Pohang Iron & Steel Co., POSCO’s predecessor, in the southeastern port city of Pohang.

Despite industry skepticism, under founder Park’s leadership, POSCO began production in 1972 just four years after the company’s inauguration in April 1968. POSCO grew rapidly, becoming the world’s third-largest steelmaker in terms of crude steel output.

“We had considered burying his remains near POSCO’s headquarters in Pohang, where he spent his whole life, but it would have required destruction of some part of the mountains,” an official of the commission said, explaining the decision on the burial site.

Park’s funeral is scheduled for early Saturday. 

(Yonhap News)