SK Innovation Drives to Become a Global Top 3 in Electric Vehicle Batteries

First to Showcase Electric Vehicle Batteries in Promotional Video
Aggressive Investment in Battery Business... Accelerating Toward Global Top 3

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] SK Innovation is strengthening its identity as an 'electric vehicle battery' company and aims to expand its battery production capacity to 30GWh (gigawatt-hours) within the year, targeting the global top 3. As part of this effort, the company revamped its website and produced a promotional video highlighting its electric vehicle battery business this year.

According to industry sources on the 8th, SK Innovation revamped its official website last month and posted a notice titled 'Electric Vehicle Battery Litigation FAQ' in the investment information category.

The notice includes not only information related to the ITC lawsuit but also analyses on 'Why SK Innovation is rapidly growing in the battery industry' and 'SK Innovation's battery business outlook.' Earlier this year, LG Chem posted an ITC lawsuit Q&A notice but did not respond actively; however, SK Innovation has recently been proactive in disseminating battery lawsuit information. An SK Innovation official explained, "While the notice was partly intended to enhance external understanding of the electric vehicle battery lawsuit, it was also to ensure internal employees are well-informed about the lawsuit."

Earlier, in July, SK Innovation released an advertising video that prominently featured electric vehicle batteries instead of gas stations for the first time. This contrasts with previous advertisements that always introduced the refining business, such as gas stations, first.

Industry insiders interpret this as SK Innovation internally signaling its commitment to making the electric vehicle battery business its core focus. A business circle official said, "A senior SK executive stated, 'Even if we invest only one-tenth of the cost we put into batteries, the refining business's profits could improve, but we are investing in the battery business for the future,'" adding, "This means they are going all-in on the electric vehicle battery business."

In fact, SK Innovation is actively investing in the electric vehicle battery business. SK Innovation owns the Seosan plant in Korea (4.7GWh), Komarom Plant 1 in Hungary (7.5GWh), Changzhou plant in China (7.5GWh), and Georgia plant in the United States (9.8GWh, planned for mass production in 2022). It is currently constructing a second electric vehicle battery plant in Komarom, Hungary. This year, it signed an investment agreement for the establishment of a second plant in Georgia, USA, and is also considering establishing a third plant in Hungary.

SK Innovation internally expects to secure an electric vehicle battery production capacity of 30GWh within the year. This scale surpasses the production capacity of Samsung SDI (20GWh).

An industry official in the electric vehicle battery sector said, "The ITC lawsuit is a turning point," adding, "Once the lawsuit risk disappears, it is expected that SK Innovation will take a more aggressive approach to electric vehicle battery investments, including joint ventures, beyond just building factories."

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