Hyundai And LGES Begin Construction Of Battery Plant in Indonesia

It will have manufacturing output of 10 GWh annually with an option for 30 GWh.

Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution Begin Construction of EV Battery Cell Plant in Indonesia

Mark Kane

By: Mark Kane

Sep 17, 2021 at 8:16am ET

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On September 15, 2021, Hyundai Motor Group and LG Chem's LG Energy Solution officially began construction of the first lithium-ion battery cell plant in Indonesia, which was announced in July.

The facility will be located in Karawang, near the Indonesian capital of Jakarta. According to schedule, the construction should be completed by the first half of 2023, while mass production is expected to commence in the first half of 2024.

The initial phase is 10 GWh of NCMA battery cells annually (enough for more than 150,000 battery electric vehicles, according to Hyundai) with an option for expansion up to 30 GWh annually. Batteries will be used in Hyundai's and Kia's electric vehicles, based on the latest E-GMP platform.

"The new battery cell factory will be built on a 330,000-square-meter parcel of land. Plant construction will be completed by the first half of 2023. Mass production of battery cells in the new facility is expected to commence in the first half of 2024. When fully operational, the facility is expected to produce a total of 10-GWh worth of NCMA lithium-ion battery cells every year, enough for more than 150,000 BEVs. In addition, the facility will be ready to increase its production capacity up to 30 GWh to meet the growth of future BEV needs."

This probably opens the way for LG Chem to secure rich sources of nickel in Indonesia for all of its plants globally.

It will be interesting to see when Hyundai Motor Group will start local production of electric cars.

Euisun Chung, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group said:

“Hyundai Motor Group is focusing its capabilities on becoming a global leader in the EV market, which is the key to securing future competitiveness. The plant is a part of these efforts. Starting with this plant, an EV ecosystem will be successfully established in Indonesia with the development of various related industries. Furthermore, we expect Indonesia to play a key role in the ASEAN EV market.”

Jong-hyun Kim, President and CEO of LG Energy Solution said:

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“Today marks a significant step in starting a new era of the EV battery industry in Indonesia, with the establishment of its first battery cell manufacturing plant in the country. Through the joint venture partnership, together, we are now a step closer to establishing the world’s first EV comprehensive supply chain.” He added “LG Energy Solution will do its utmost to foster the joint battery cell manufacturing facility into becoming a key base to take on the global EV market.”

Battery Cell joint venture in brief:

50/50 joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and LG Chem's LG Energy Solution
a total investment of $1.1 billion
location: Karawang, near the Indonesian capital, Jakarta
construction start: September 15, 2021
construction will be completed by the first half of 2023
mass production of battery cells is expected to commence in the first half of 2024
annual capacity of 10 GWh (up to 30 GWh in the future)
battery chemistry: lithium-ion NCMA (nickel, cobalt, manganese and aluminum cathode)
batteries will be used for E-GMP-based Hyundai and Kia electric cars