Hyundai, SK On to build new battery plant in Georgia

Hyundai Motor Group and SK On have decided to build a new battery manufacturing plant for electric vehicles in the U.S. state of Georgia.

According to the Georgia state government, the two companies will establish the plant at a site in Bartow County, northwest of Atlanta. The companies aim to begin operations in 2025 with approximately $4-5 billion investment. The announcement did not include specifics, such as what form the partnership will be - whether it’s a joint venture - and supply volume.

Hyundai Motor and SK On signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on EV batteries in North America after 2025 last Tuesday. The two said their strategic alliance is designed to provide SK On's batteries for Hyundai Motor's EV plant in the U.S. after 2025. Specific details, such as the supply quantity and the type of cooperation, will be discussed later. The announcement from Georgia is interpreted as a byproduct of their MOU.

Hyundai Motor said the two sides are discussing how they will build the battery plant in Georgia, but the plan's details have yet to be finalized. It seems that they are still in negotiation regarding their cooperation.

Bartow County is 320 kilometers apart from Hyundai’s Montgomery plant, which will produce the all-electric version of the Genesis GV70 SUV. It is also 430 kilometers away from Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), an EV plant located in Bryan County of Georgia, and close to Kia Motors’ plant. If the plant is built as the announcement, it is expected to supply batteries to all three plants.

Hyundai Motor Group earlier set its goal of selling 3.23 million EVs, including 830,000 units in the U.S. by 2030. This goal requires mass-producing 60GWh of batteries, the volume that could be produced through three battery plants. To that end, observations are the company is cooperating with not only SK On but also LG Energy Solution to continue to increase its battery manufacturing facilities.


Gun-Huk Lee gun@donga.com