Money Today Reporter Lee Se-yeon | 2023.04.14 19:37
LG Chem will build a joint venture factory for battery precursors in Saemangeum, Gunsan, North Jeolla Province with Huayou Cobalt, a Chinese precursor and cathode material producer.
According to industry sources on the 14th, LG Chem and Huayu Cobalt plan to sign a business agreement on the 19th to invest 1.2 trillion won in Saemangeum, Gunsan, North Jeolla Province to build a precursor production facility.
A precursor is a material at a stage before becoming a cathode material, and is a compound that is a mixture of raw materials such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese. If lithium is added here, it becomes a cathode material. The cathode material constitutes a battery together with the cathode material, separator, and electrolyte.
Precursor accounts for about 60% of cathode material cost. Since most of the raw materials that make up nickel and other precursors come from China, Chinese companies are dominating the market.
An official from LG Chem said, “We cannot confirm” regarding the establishment of the Saemangeum precursor joint venture plant.
Last year, LG Chem also established Korea Precursor with Chemco, a subsidiary of Korea Zinc. It is expected to be able to mass-produce more than 20,000 tons of precursors per year from the second half of 2024.
[저작권자 @머니투데이, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
