Lotte Energy Materials Adds Battery Copper Foil Production Facility in Spain

Mass Production of High-End Copper Foil After Completion by the End of 2025

Lotte Energy Materials plans to complete a smart factory in Spain by 2025 to target the European copper foil market.

Lotte Energy Materials announced on the 7th that it will begin site preparation work in the second half of the year for a smart factory producing high-end copper foil for electric vehicle batteries with an annual capacity of 30,000 tons, investing 560 billion KRW in Monroych, Catalonia, Spain.

Lotte Energy Materials Spain Smart Factory Bird's-eye View

Originally, the plan was to build a factory with a capacity of 25,000 tons by 2024, but considering the demand from local European customers, the production volume was increased to 30,000 tons and the completion schedule was adjusted to 2025.

This is the second overseas smart factory following the one in Kuching, Malaysia, and the site covers a total area of 440,400 square meters, equivalent to 62 football fields, large enough to accommodate a 100,000-ton high-end copper foil production line. This investment is the first phase expansion project, and future phased expansions are being considered along with advance infrastructure investment, including securing approximately 500,000 square meters of land for solar power generation.

Catalonia, Spain, is located near the Mediterranean Sea and is characterized by a mild climate throughout the four seasons with little temperature variation year-round, making it an optimal location for high-end copper foil production and quality control. Additionally, it has a stable power grid based on eco-friendly renewable energy such as solar power, meeting the 'RE100' standards required by the European Union (EU), which allows it to actively appeal to local customers emphasizing environmental friendliness.

The Spanish government is also providing strong support for establishing a high-end copper foil production base by offering hundreds of billions of KRW in incentives under the 'PERTE' support policy and introducing a fast-track system to expedite administrative procedures for permits and approvals.

Last year, Lotte Energy Materials was included as the only Korean battery material company in the consortium for the massive 70 billion euro (approximately 99 trillion KRW) 'F3 (Future: Fast Forward)' project, led by the Volkswagen Group to establish Spain as a European electric vehicle hub, creating opportunities for collaboration with local European companies and securing potential customers.

Lotte Energy Materials currently produces 60,000 tons of copper foil domestically in Iksan (20,000 tons) and Malaysia (40,000 tons), and is considering additional expansions totaling 130,000 tons in Malaysia, Spain, and North America, including 20,000 tons in Malaysia scheduled for completion by the end of this year. The company aims to achieve a global high-end copper foil market share of 30% with a production capacity of 240,000 tons by 2028.

Kim Yeon-seop, CEO of Lotte Energy Materials, stated, "The Spain smart factory will operate as a key base that meets the localization demands of European customers while actively responding to the demand for high-end copper foil through expanded capacity beyond the original plan. Based on differentiated product technology, we will become the first vendor for European battery customers."

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