Jidongseop SK Battery Business Head Visits Hungary Plant... 'Determination to Target European Market'

Among Overseas Production Sites, First Visit to Hungary Factory
Europe's Electric Vehicle Market Forward Base... Battery Plant 2 Under Construction

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Ji Dong-seop, head of SK Innovation's battery business, chose the Hungarian battery plant as his first global business site visit since taking office. This is interpreted as a demonstration of his strong intention to actively secure orders in the European market this year.

According to SK Innovation on the 13th, Ji recently visited the electric vehicle battery plant located in Kom?rom, Hungary, thoroughly inspecting the equipment and production status of each line within the plant, and received reports on key tasks to be promoted this year and plans for creating social value.

At the site, Ji emphasized, "Please grow this place, which will be a milestone for SK Innovation's battery business, into a global best model," and added, "Securing an advanced base in Europe, the mecca of the electric vehicle market, holds great significance for SK Innovation's battery business."

SK Innovation invested 850 billion KRW in November 2017 to establish a battery production plant in Kom?rom, Hungary, with an annual capacity of 7.5 GWh. This was to prepare a production base for electric vehicle batteries targeting the European market. SK Innovation completed construction in just 20 months and has been producing electric vehicle batteries since last month. The Hungarian plant is not only SK Innovation's first production base in Europe but also the first global site operated solely with its own shares.

Kom?rom was once Nokia's Eastern European mobile phone production base. However, after Nokia's withdrawal, it returned to being a quiet city. But with SK Innovation settling here, the city is being revitalized. Engineers dispatched from the Production Technology Center in Seosan, Chungbuk, the headquarters of SK Innovation's battery production, are teaching locally hired personnel and producing electric vehicle batteries together.

Across from the operational first plant, a second battery plant with a capacity of 9 GWh is under construction with an investment of about 940 billion KRW. The total investment in the first and second plants amounts to 1.78 trillion KRW. Once the second plant is completed, SK Innovation's production capacity at the Hungarian plant will expand to 16.5 GWh, equivalent to about 330,000 vehicles.

An SK Innovation official explained, "Interest in electric vehicles is higher in the European market than in any other region," and added, "The reason Ji visited Hungary first is because the Hungarian plant is considered a symbol and foothold for targeting the European market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.