SEOUL: South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co and LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) are considering building two joint venture battery plants in the United States, a local online news outlet reported on Nov 28.
Under the contemplated plan, the plants would be built in Georgia and each have an annual capacity of about 35 gigawatt hours (GWh), enough to power about one million electric vehicles (EVs), said the news service, Dailian, citing an unnamed source.
LGES declined to comment. Hyundai Motor was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters.
The report added that the new factories were likely to be located near Hyundai Motor Group’s new EV plant in Georgia and would help the company meet US EV subsidy rules.
The US Inflation Reduction Act will require from next year that at least 40% of the monetary value of critical minerals for batteries be from the US or a US free-trade partner to qualify for US tax credits. That share will rise to 80% in 2027.
A South Korean newspaper on Nov 25 reported that Hyundai Motor and SK On, the battery unit of energy group SK Innovation Co Ltd, planned to invest about 2.5 trillion won (RM8.46 billion) to build a new joint venture factory in Georgia.
Last year, Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution said they would set up a US$1.1 billion (RM5 billion)EV battery joint venture in Indonesia. – Reuters
