Hyundai & SK On launch joint venture for battery production
Hyundai Motor Group and SK On have formed a joint venture to produce battery cells for electric vehicles in the USA. The partners are investing a total of five billion dollars in the 50:50 joint venture.
After the companies signed a corresponding letter of intent in November 2022, the boards of directors have now given the green light for the joint venture. This is now followed by concrete information: The partners will each invest 2.5 billion US dollars (i.e. around 2.3 billion euros) in a battery cell factory in Bartow County in the US state of Georgia, which is to go into operation in the second half of 2025 with an annual production capacity of 35 GWh.
According to the Hyundai announcement, this production capacity should be sufficient for 300,000 e-cars. This figure is important because Hyundai is known to have started construction of a new electric car plant, also in Georgia, in October 2022. Called Megaplant by the company, this Bryan County factory is scheduled to begin production in the first half of 2025 with an annual capacity of 300,000 Hyundai, Kia and Genesis e-cars.
So the battery cells will be transported once across Georgia: The cell factory of Hyundai and SK On in Bartow County is located northwest of Atlanta, while the vehicle plant in Bryan County is located in the southeast of the state near the Atlantic coast. However, Hyundai and Kia operate other US plants, such as the Kia West Point Assembly Plant in Georgia or the Hyundai plant in Montgomery, Alabama – although no BEV models are currently built there. The new Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia, on the other hand, is planned as a pure electric car factory.
Hyundai does not yet provide any information on the type of battery cells and the origin of the raw materials, which is important in accordance with US mining regulations. However, the internal processing of the battery cells is specifically mentioned: Hyundai Mobis, a supplier belonging to the Hyundai group, will assemble battery packs with cells from the new plant and then deliver them to the group’s US production facilities for the production of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis electric models.
Managers from Hyundai or SK On do not appear in the announcement. Instead, Hyundai emphasises the importance of SK On as a “strategic partner for the group”. After all, SK On supplies the battery cells for the current E-GMP models Hyundai Ioniq 5, Ioniq 6, Kia EV6 or Genesis GV60.
SK On already operates its first own US battery factory in the state and supplies Volkswagen and Ford from there.
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