LG Energy Solution will invest more than $4.5 billion (KRW 5 trillion) by the end of 2025 in the company’s own U.S. business to expand its battery production capacity. This new investment will secure an additional 70GWh in just the US alone, and will be in addition to current and past investments.

In addition to the Green Field Project, LG Energy Solution and GM are currently discussing plans to build a second joint venture plant in the US, which will even further increase its cell production capacity. This second JV plant is expected to have a production capacity scale similar to the two companies’ first plant, and is set to manufacture next generation EV cells based on advanced technology.

LG Energy Solution developed these plans over the last year to mobilize rapidly its Green Field Project in a full-fledged effort to ensure its position in the growing US electric vehicle (EV) market. The Green Field Project will provide the US with a large-scale supply of batteries to increase renewable energy sources across an array of industries, including electric vehicles.

LG Energy Solution established its first US research facility in 2000 and invested $600 million to secure a production capacity of 5GWh at its first Michigan plant built in 2012. In 2019, the company entered into a joint venture with General Motors (GM) to construct a $2.3-billion battery plant in Ohio, which is slated for completion in 2022 to create an annual capacity of 35GWh. The latest Green Field Project will give the company a total production capacity of more than 110 GWh in the US.

Within the first half of 2021, LG Energy Solution will select at least two location candidates for its factory intended to manufacture various types of batteries in the US. This will be followed by a meticulous board review before making final decisions.

The new LG Energy Solution facility will produce pouch cell batteries to be used in EVs and energy storage systems (ESS), as well as cylindrical cell EV batteries that are currently rapidly increasing in demand.

All new LG Energy Solution plants in the US will operate using 100 percent renewable energy, reinforcing the company’s dedication to its Green Field Project. In the second half of last year, the Michigan battery plant began running entirely on renewable energy.