The Korean company already has a joint venture with General Motors, according to ABC News. GM and LG are currently building a $2.3 billion battery factory in Lordstown, Ohio, near Cleveland, that will employ about 1,000 people when it is completed next year.
The Lordstown site is not too far from GM’s other electric vehicle plants, one in Detroit and the other north of the city in Orion Township, Michigan. LG and GM hope to have a decision on a second battery factory site in Tennessee by the first half of the year,
But looking at the bigger picture, Denise Gray, president of LG Energy Solution’s Michigan unit, said the company’s investment will result in an additional 70GWh of U.S. battery production capacity to respond to growth in the electric vehicle market, reports Reuters.
“We are eager to expand our production capacity so that it can meet the needs of the numerous global automakers across the U.S. and Europe,” Gray said. “We are looking at at least two new factories in the United States.”
Gray also said the planned $4.5 billion investment would create about 10,000 jobs, with 4,000 jobs in the facilities and another 6,000 indirect jobs through construction subcontractors.
LG dispute with SK Innovation
LG Energy Solution has been embroiled in a high-profile dispute with rival South Korean firm SK Innovation in the United States after LG alleged that SK stole trade secrets, according to Business Insider.
Last month, the U.S. International Trade Commission issued a 10-year order prohibiting SK Innovation from importing most of its lithium-ion batteries into the U.S. SK is lobbying the White House to negate the decision, or it could be overturned if the two companies reach an independent settlement.
LG Energy Solution Senior Vice President Chang Seung-se said the company’s latest US plans were unrelated to the dispute and “more about (having a) very proactive and preemptive investment plan prior to confirmation of demand from our customers.”
