Demand for electric vehicles soars LG Chemical plans to invest $8.7 billion in battery materials

LG Chemical (LG Chem) announced today that it will invest 10 trillion won (US $8.7 billion) by 2025 to accelerate the sustainable growth of the battery materials business and other businesses. At the same time, join the ranks of other Korean industrial giants to develop in the direction of more environmentally friendly technology.

Of the 10 trillion won, the company will invest 6 trillion won in expanding the production line of battery materials, 3 trillion won in the production of environmentally friendly petrochemical products, and the rest will be used in the life sciences business.

Shen Xuezhe (Shin Hak Cheol), CEO of LG Chemistry, said at a press conference in Seoul that this is the most innovative change since the company was founded, and practical results will be seen in the second half of this year.

In addition to LG Chemistry, South Korean companies have also announced large-scale environmental investment plans to reduce carbon emissions and achieve sustainable growth goals. SK Innovation said earlier this month that it plans to invest 30 trillion won by 2025 to strengthen the recycling of batteries and plastic waste. Rakuten Chemical (Lotte Chemical) also said a few days ago that it will invest 4.4 trillion won by 2030 to increase hydrogen production.

LG Chemical has invested heavily in battery materials at a time when demand for electric vehicles is soaring. The company expects the market for battery materials to grow from 39 trillion won in 2021 to about 100 trillion won in 2026.

In response to the rapid rise in demand, the company will start to build a plant with an annual production capacity of 60,000 tons of cathode battery materials in Guiwei City from December this year. The company expects its production of cathode battery materials to increase from 40,000 tons in 2020 to 260000 tons in 2026.