SK On-Ford Battery Joint Venture 'BlueOvalSK' Officially Launched

Construction of 3 Production Plants in Tennessee and Kentucky
Also Promoting Turkish Battery Joint Venture

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] SK On and the American automobile company Ford's electric vehicle secondary battery production joint venture 'BlueOvalSK' are starting full-scale activities.

On the 14th (local time), the two companies announced that they had completed internal and external reviews necessary for establishing the joint venture and officially launched it. BlueOvalSK's shares are held 5:5 by both companies, and a total of six board members, three from each company, will be formed. In the spirit of joint management, all board meeting agendas will be resolved unanimously.

The inaugural Chief Executive Officer (CEO) will be SK On's CEO Ham Chang-woo, and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will be Ford's Jim Cranney, with the positions switching after three years. CEO Ham is a legal and financial expert who joined SK Innovation in 2009 after working at Guggenheim Partners and Goldman Sachs, and he has overseen the establishment of the joint venture with Ford.

The two companies have held several joint workshops to coordinate opinions for maximizing productivity. To ensure successful establishment and optimal operation of the corporation, they have consulted on key areas such as manufacturing, purchasing, IT, legal affairs, finance, and human resources to establish future operational plans.

BlueOvalSK's headquarters will be located in Georgia, where SK On's production facilities are currently situated, but will move to BlueOval City in the future. BlueOval City, being developed by Ford in Tennessee, will include the BlueOvalSK battery plant, Ford's electric vehicle assembly plant, and parts and materials complexes.

The two companies agreed last year to invest a total of 10.2 trillion KRW, 5.1 trillion KRW each, in BlueOvalSK to build one battery plant in Tennessee and two in Kentucky.

The Tennessee plant will be built on a 15.54 million square meter (4.7 million pyeong) site alongside Ford's electric vehicle production plant. The Kentucky plant site covers a total of 6.28 million square meters (1.9 million pyeong). Upon completion of the three plants, the total annual battery cell production capacity will be 129 GWh.

Ford requires 140 GWh of batteries in North America and 240 GWh globally by 2030, with a significant portion expected to be supplied through SK On's own plants and BlueOvalSK. Ford's large pickup truck electric vehicle 'F-150 Lightning,' released this spring, has gained popularity among consumers, boosting the performance of SK On, the battery supplier.

Following the launch of the North American joint venture, the two companies plan to continue cooperation in Europe. In March, they announced the establishment of a joint venture with Turkish company Ko? Holdings with a production capacity of 30 to 45 GWh.

CEO Ham said, "SK On, which possesses the best technology in the battery field such as high-nickel batteries, and Ford, known as America's national car, have joined hands to secure overwhelming competitiveness in the global electric vehicle market."

Meanwhile, SK On is increasing its market share in the global battery market through independent investments. Through steady investments in the United States, Hungary, China, and other locations, production capacity, which was only 1.6 GWh in 2017, is expected to increase to 77 GWh by the end of this year. The global market share ranking, which was 9th in 2019, rose to 5th in the first half of this year. SK On plans to increase production capacity to over 500 GWh by 2030.

Status of SK On's Global Production Bases

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