South Korea’s SK Innovation aims to take nearly a third of the global battery market by 2025.
The company, which also owns an oil refinery and chemicals business, has ambitious plans to expand its battery production from 4.4% market share (1.1 GWh) last year to 10% by 2020 and 30% in eight years’ time – when the rapidly-growing electric car battery market is expected to be demanding a total of 300 GWh (up from 25 GWh in 2016).
“The number of battery orders will increase hugely. The main game will begin now,” SK’s chief executive Kim Jun (pictured) said at a press conference in Seoul.
Currently lagging behind South Korean rivals LG Chem and Samsung SDI, SK plans to spend 10 trillion won ($8.91 billion) in battery and other non-refining sectors by 2020 to shift its reliance on refining.
“We have been cautious about expanding our battery business,” Jun said. “But we will take an aggressive approach by boosting our production capacity and reinforcing our sales network.”
The company, which entered the EV battery market in 2008 and provides lithium-ion batteries for carmakers Hyundai, Kia and Mercedes-Benz, is planning new factories in South Korea and Eastern Europe to cope with a backlog of orders.
SK is also aiming to develop a battery capable of powering EVs to a distance of 700km (435 miles) on a single charge by 2020.
But its ambition to get a chunk of China’s EV battery market was dealt a blow earlier this year when production stopped at its joint-venture plant there following government changes in regulations favouring all-domestic producers.