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EcoPro EM completes construction of Pohang cathode materials plant

Published: 23 Oct. 2022, 17:24

Former EcoPro Chairman Lee Dong-chae, third from left, and Samsung SDI CEO Choi Yoon-ho, middle, hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of a cathode materials factory in Pohang, North Gyeongsang on Friday. [SAMSUNG SDI]

EcoPro EM, a joint venture between Samsung SDI and EcoPro BM, held a ceremony Friday to celebrate the completion of a cathode materials factory in Pohang, North Gyeongsang.

CAM7, the factory in Pohang, covers a total of 61,020 square meters (15 acres). It is able to produce 54,000 tons of cathode materials annually, giving it the highest production capacity of any single factory in the world, according to EcoPro in a statement Friday.

Pohang is about 370 kilometers (230 miles) southeast of Seoul.

Cathodes determine the capacity and average voltage of lithium-ion batteries.

EcoPro BM is known for mass producing high-nickel cathode materials with nickel content of more than 80 percent.

Friday’s ceremony was attended by former EcoPro Chairman Lee Dong-chae, Samsung SDI CEO Choi Yoon-ho and Pohang City Mayor Lee Kang-deok.

Operation of the new factory will start in the first quarter of next year following trial tests. The produced materials will be supplied to Samsung SDI.

EcoPro EM already has the capacity to produce 36,000 tons of cathode materials from CAM6, another factory completed last year.

The production of the materials from CAM7 will be a turning point for EcoPro EM to raise the company’s competitiveness against competitors in terms of technologies and price, said EcoPro EM CEO Park Jong-hwan in a statement.

EcoPro BM announced in December it will spend around 970 billion won ($680 million) over the next four years to build a cathode plant in Hungary, which would be its first plant overseas.

BY JIN MIN-JI [[email protected]]