Battery giant LG Chem has formed a joint venture with Tianjin B&M Science and Technology (B&M), a subsidiary of China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt that will specialise in cathode materials.
The establishment of the joint venture further cements LG Chem’s vertical integration system with key raw materials to produce cathode materials and the expansion of B&M’s cathode business in the global market.
B&M’s capital investment in LG Chem’s Gumi cathode production plant will result in a 49% stake in the JV with the remaining 51% to be held by LG Chem.
Both partners have committed KRW 500 billion ($403 million) toward the initiative by 2025.
The joint venture will be led by Kim Woosung, current president of LG Chem’s Gumi site.
With an intense focus on manufacturing NCMA (nickel, cobalt, manganese, aluminum) cathode materials for next-generation electric vehicle batteries, LG Chem plans to begin initial mass production at Gumi in the second half of 2024.
The plant’s annual production capacity of 60,000 tons will be enough to power around 500,000 high-performance EVs.
Cathode precursor deal
LG Chem has also entered a contract to create a joint venture with Kemco to produce precursors using metals produced and supplied by the latter as well as recycled metals extracted from used lithium-ion batteries.
A plant is planned as an exclusive line for NCMA (nickel, cobalt, manganese, aluminum) precursors that will be used for next-generation EV batteries, which LG Chem is focusing on in the Onsan Industrial Complex in Ulsan.
