South Korean battery giant LG Energy Solution (LGES) proudly announced that it successfully reached 90% battery efficiency within just a month of launching its new Tennessee factory in the US.
Ultium Cells Plant 2 hits the ground running with record 90% yield
The Tennessee battery factory is a joint venture between LGES and American legacy automaker General Motors.
Ultium Cells Plant 2’s Head Kim Young-deuk announced that the battery facility managed to achieve its target yield in just a short period of time since its launch, according to EVMagz.
“We achieved the target yield of over 90% in just one month of mass production, the shortest period in history.”
Kim Young-deuk, Head of Ultium Cells Plant 2
About the Ultium Cells Plant 2
LGES and GM expect the Ultium Cells Plant 2 to hit an annual production output of 50 GWh. It would apparently be enough to produce 600,000 high-performance electric cars with a driving range of 500 km (310 miles) between charges.
The partnership erected the battery facility on 257,000 square meters (2.8 million square feet) of land and employed approximately 1,200 workers.
The two major industry players’ total investment in developing the Ultium Cells Plant 2 reached an astounding 2.7 trillion won ($1.96 billion).
It officially launched full operations in March 2024. As of today, it cranks out Ultium battery cells to support the production of GM’s Cadillac Lyriq EV.
“The successful launch of the high-end vehicle Lyriq will be an important milestone in the long-standing GM-LG partnership.”
Plant Director at Ultium Cells LLC, Spring Hill, TN
Looking forward
LGES and GM plan to expand the Ultium Cells Plant 2’s production coverage to include the batteries for the latter’s third-gen electric vehicles.
One of these EVs is the Chevrolet Equinox EV, which is on track to kick off deliveries this year. The battery facility may need to ramp up production to meet an expected surge in demand, considering that the new electric Equinox will sell at a very enticing price.
LG Group is also developing a new cathode material factory in Clarksville, Tennessee. Construction started in December last year. In addition, LGES is planning to launch its planned 4680 battery cell production at its Ochang factory in South Korea. These innovative battery cells are expected to supply one of LGES’ major partners, Tesla.
