With a plan to open the factory by late 2023, LG and GM have joined forced to build their second battery manufacturing base.
Transition towards electric future
This factory will create 1,300 jobs with a production capacity of 35GW hours. Interestingly, this is also similar to the Ultium cells joint venture Ohio, which also manufactures EV batteries.
A statement was given by Mary Barra, GM’s chief executive,
“The addition of our second all-new Ultium battery cell plant in the U.S. with our joint venture partner LG Energy Solution is another major step in our transition to an all-electric future.”
The second factory is expected to use less expensive battery chemicals. It is also expected that more factories are to be opened with time. As meeting demand with these two factories wouldn’t be sufficient. By 2035, General Motors plans on eliminating its gas and diesel car production.
US battery production
As many battery production are currently located in China and Korea, this manufacturing sector in Tennessee is a boon.
The LG-GM battery manufacturing plant will provide batteries for the Cadillac Lyriq crossover EV. The all-new Cadillac Lyriq is to start it’s manufacturing next year. However, the batteries will be supplied from Korea, till the Tennessee set up is finished.
Besides the battery investment, GM is to invest $2 Billion in Springhill production. Furthermore, this is where the Cadillac Lyruq crossover EV and Honda electric crossover are to be manufactured.
Additionally, LG is also going to invest in battery production in the US. Around $4.5 Billion is expected to be invested in coming 4 years.
Leading production
As GM has been one of the leading automakers in America, it expects to be the same in electric vehicles too. In addition to the Tennessee battery productio, they also have EV manufacturing factory. Also, the other places include, Canada, Ontario and Mexico.
More or less, both LG and GM have similar goals while entering into the American EV market. As the CEO of LG, Kim Jong-hyun said,
“Focus more on establishing a stable supply chain system that is differentiated and stable within the U.S., from R&D to production of batteries to raw materials.”
Furthermore, making less expensive batteris is another progressive step towards making electric vehicles. As the battery takes up half of the total manufacturing cost of the EV.
With a capacity to supply 500,000 electric cars by 2023, GM’s cheaper option is expeted to be in demand. The Tennessee battery manufacturing is only the start of US EV battery manufacturing sector. Their plant will have union-representatives, making sure of better work environment space.