LG Corporation Chairman & CEO Koo Bon-moo (second from right) at the groundbreaking ceremony of EV battery plant in Wroclaw. (image: LG Chem)
SEOUL, Oct. 6 (Korea Bizwire) – LG Chem Ltd., South Korea’s top chemical firm, said Thursday it has broken ground for a plant in Poland for electric vehicle batteries, hoping to become a leading EV battery supplier to European carmakers.
The EV battery plant in Wroclaw, southwestern Poland, will cost 400 billion won (US$359 million), with its construction expected to be completed by 2018, LG Chem said.
The plant will churn out 100,000 battery units annually for dedicated EVs.
Europe’s EV market is expected to reach 2.27 million units in 2030 from the current 110,000 units, as European automakers are rushing to roll out eco-friendly cars with lower emissions.
LG Chem has already been an EV battery supplier to global carmakers such as Audi and Renault-Nissan.
With the Polish plant, LG Chem will have an annual capacity of over 280,000 batteries. LG Chem currently operates EV battery plants in China, the U.S. and South Korea.
Last year, LG Chem started the operation of its new EV battery plant in China, eyeing growing demand on the back of Beijing’s plans to tackle air pollution by introducing more eco-friendly cars.
LG Chem has been working on 83 business projects along with 29 carmakers, valued at some 36 trillion won.
LG Chem aims to log 7 trillion won in sales from its EV battery business in 2020.
(Yonhap)
