Posco Chemical and General Motors to form battery cathode JV

Posco Chemical said on Thursday that it plans to form a joint venture with General Motors which will construct a large battery cathode factory in the US.

The factory will start production of high-nickel cathodes in 2024 that will be supplied to Ultium Cells, the battery-making joint venture between General Motors and LG Energy Solution, the South Korean chemical firm said.

How much Posco Chemical and the US automobile giant spend on the project and its locations will be announced at a later date.

Posco Chemical was selected by Ultium Cells as a cathode vendor in December 2020. The South Korean chemical firm is currently constructing a new cathode factory at Gwangyang, South Korea with an annual production capacity of 60,000 metric tonnes per year.

Posco Chemical said it made the strategic decision to form a joint venture with General Motors as the US is strengthening its local battery supply chain and pushing to sell more electric vehicles locally.

The joint venture will also expand cathode production in Europe and China, Posco Chemical added.