Charged EVs | LG Chem to build major cathode plant in Tennessee

LG Chem has signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a new cathode manufacturing facility in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Manufacturing plants for batteries and other EV components are popping up all over the country these days, and the announcements invariably mention President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which offers incentives for companies to establish supply chains here in the good old USA. LG Chem says its new Tennessee facility will allow it to “proactively address the changing dynamics of the global battery material market and with legislation such as the Inflation Reduction Act.”

“LG Chem’s decision to invest $3.2 billion in Clarksville is a testament to Tennessee’s unmatched business climate, skilled workforce and position as a leader in the automotive industry,” said Tennessee’s Republican Governor Bill Lee. “I thank this company for creating more than 850 new jobs.”

The 420-acre plant is expected to have an annual production capacity of 120,000 tons of cathode material by 2027—enough to power 1.2 million EVs. Construction will begin in the first quarter of 2023, and mass production is expected to start in the second half of 2025.

The new facility will produce NCMA cathode materials containing nickel, cobalt, manganese and aluminum for next-generation EV batteries. LG Chem says the plant will incorporate its most advanced production technology, including the ability to produce more than 10,000 tons of cathode material per line. The company plans to automate the entire production process, and to establish a quality analysis and control system that will be “the benchmark for all other cathode plants in the world.”

LG Chem says the new facility will rely completely on renewable energy provided by solar and hydroelectric power.

“The new cathode manufacturing facility in Tennessee brings us one step closer to becoming the world’s best battery materials manufacturer,” said LG Chem CEO Hak Cheol Shin. “This site will be the North American manufacturing center of excellence for the cathode supply chain.”

Source: LG Chem