OCI Signs Supply Contract for Secondary Battery Anode Material with UK-based Nexeon

Establishment of a Dedicated Factory with an Annual Capacity of 1,000 Tons in Gunsan

OCI announced on the 26th that it has signed a long-term supply contract for key raw materials necessary for the production of silicon anode materials for secondary batteries with the UK-based company Nexeon.

Starting from 2025, OCI will supply silicon anode material (SiH4) to Nexeon for five years. The initial contract size is approximately 70 billion KRW (55 million USD), and the contract scale is expected to expand as the customer's production volume increases.

Kim Yushin, President of OCI (right), is taking a commemorative photo with Scott Brown, CEO of Nexeo, on the 26th to celebrate the signing of a long-term supply contract for silicon anode special materials.

The special material plant for silicon anode materials is planned to be established on idle land at OCI's Gunsan plant, which currently produces polysilicon for semiconductors and phosphoric acid, with an annual capacity of 1,000 tons. Construction is scheduled to begin within this year, aiming for commercial production in the first half of 2025. Production will be carried out according to customer demand.

Nexeon is a leading company in silicon anode materials for secondary batteries, holding more than 170 key patents related to silicon anode materials for secondary batteries. Recently, it signed a long-term supply contract for silicon anode materials with Panasonic, the world's fourth-largest electric vehicle (EV) cell manufacturer.

Silicon anode materials are rapidly emerging as next-generation battery materials by improving the drawbacks of conventional graphite anode materials, offering advantages such as extended driving range and reduced charging time. However, due to issues with cost and stability, few companies have succeeded in commercialization.

Nexeon's silicon anode materials for secondary batteries apply proprietary technology that mitigates expansion. It is known that by gradually increasing the use of Nexeon's second-generation anode materials during battery manufacturing, the energy density of secondary batteries can be increased by up to 50%. This means extending the driving range of electric vehicles, shortening charging times, and ensuring stability.

In particular, the anode raw materials supplied by OCI have a cost advantage because they use raw materials produced during the semiconductor polysilicon manufacturing process at the Gunsan plant.

Starting with the supply of silicon anode raw materials, OCI plans to actively develop next-generation silicon anode materials and semiconductor materials. Following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on June 1st to establish a 11,000-ton scale semiconductor polysilicon joint venture with Tokuyama in Japan, OCI will also begin producing high-softening-point pitch, a coating agent for anode materials, from the fourth quarter in partnership with POSCO Future M.

Kim Yushin, CEO of OCI, stated, "We expect that both companies will maximize their strengths to produce products with quality as well as price competitiveness," adding, "We will continue active investments to secure competitiveness and leadership in the rapidly growing secondary battery materials market."

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