DATE : 2014-06-16
LG Chem will construct a joint venturebattery production plant in China to fulfill rising demand there. LG said in a statement, LG Chem is in the final stage ofchoosing a strategic partner toestablish a battery joint venture inChina . "We will unveil the exact location of theventure and other details later." LG refused to name the potentialChinese partner, however said it wouldmake an declaration soon. The plant will be LG Chem's third overseas battery plant. UnderPresident Kwon Young-soo, the company has a battery plant in Koreathat can produce 200,000 units a year, and a plant in Michigan in theU.S. LG Chem in addition has a factory in Nanjing, making small batteries forsmartphones and other mobile devices. Demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to surge, with the marketprojected to grow to $26 billion annually by 2023.
The consistent and dependable performance of the rechargeable batteries more and more used in electric vehicles (EVs) partly lies in China's effortsto fight pollution and cut reliance on oil imports. Beijing intends to have up to 5 million EVs or plug-in hybrids across thecountry by 2020. Company spokesman Song Choong-sup said, "China leads the industry growth. LG Chem can't afford to lose thathuge market . "Bydirectly operating a new battery plant in China, we will be able to meetdemand from clients effectively." The company in addition said that it lately signed agreements with ShanghaiAutomobile and Industrial Corporation (SAIC) and Qoros to supply LG-manufactured batteries. SAIC is China's top automaker. Song would not give additional financial details or say which SAIC andQoros models would use LG batteries. He said, "We can confirm that SAIC"s plug-in hybrid EVs and Qoro's next-generation EVs will use LG batteries . The latest agreements take LG's battery clients to four, which makes itthe industry leader in China. " The top three Chinese carmakers have become LG clients," . "Those three LG clients collectively sold 10 million vehicles lastyear, accounting for 60 percent of the total. We are better positionedthan other battery suppliers for a greater share in the booming EVmarket in China." LG Chem said that it had secured global 20 carmakers from GeneralMotors, Hyundai-Kia to Ford and Volvo as clients, while rivals SamsungSDI and SK Innovation had four and three battery-selling clientsrespectively. LG Chem said that its batteries were guaranteed in terms of stability. Songstressed that the EV batteries had not caused any safety problems. Hyundai-Kia has sold 100,000 units of Sonata hybrid vehicles. Otherautomakers are selling more electricity-powered vehicles. In Asia, Nissan and Mitsubishi have also committed to using lithium-ionbatteries across.
SOURCE Al Bawaba.com