Two South Korean companies launch Indonesia’s 1st EV battery plant

South Korean companies Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution launched on Wednesday their first electric vehicle (EV) battery cell production plant in Indonesia with an annual capacity of 10 Gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery cells. "This is the first and largest EV battery cell plant in Southeast Asia, and I am sure we will be able to win this competition with other countries because the nickel, bauxite and copper are here," Indonesian President Joko Widodo stated at the factory's opening ceremony, adding that the plant will cement Indonesia's global EV supply chain position. Hyundai and LG are committed to investing up to USD 9.8 billion in Southeast Asia's largest economy to develop the EV supply chain, leveraging Indonesia's rich resources of vital minerals such as nickel and copper, Widodo noted. Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Euisun Chung emphasized that Indonesia's mineral resources, such as iron and nickel, are crucial components for batteries used in millions of EVs worldwide. In 2021, Hyundai and LG announced a USD 1.1 billion investment in the battery cell plant in Indonesia's West Java province with an annual capacity to produce batteries for over 150,000 battery-based EVs. The plant's battery cells will be used in several Hyundai and Kia EVs as Indonesian officials stated that around 90 percent of the plant's products will be exported to South Korea and India. Indonesia, the world's largest nickel producer, banned raw nickel exports in 2020 to encourage investment into domestic processing of the metal and offered incentives like tax exemptions to draw in investments in nickel and EVs from around the world. Source: Kuwait News Agency