Hyundai Motor Group and SK On have announced plans to establish a joint venture plant in Batow County, Georgia, to produce electric vehicle battery cells in the U.S.
The plant will produce about 300,000 battery cells annually, with production starting in the second half of 2025, and will have the capacity to produce 35 GWh of electric vehicles.
Hyundai Motor Group and SK On will jointly invest a total of $5 billion and hold 50% of each stake in the plant. All the battery cells produced will be supplied to Hyundai Motor, Kia, and Genesis electric vehicles produced by Hyundai Mobis as battery packs in the U.S.
Before this proposal was approved, Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., and Hyundai Mobis Co. held regular board meetings on April 25 and approved the establishment of a North American battery cell joint venture with SK On. In November 2022, Hyundai Motor Group and SKOn signed an MOU to cooperate in supplying batteries to North America.
The joint plant has several advantages in terms of supply chain management as it has Kia's Georgia plant, Hyundai Motor's Alabama plant, and Hyundai Motor Group's electric vehicle plant, which will be completed in 2025.
Through this joint venture, Hyundai Motor Group plans to procure battery cells optimized for U.S. vehicles and produce and sell highly competitive electric vehicles with high efficiency, high performance, and safety.
"As key partners in the electrification business, Hyundai Motor Group and SK On have been cooperating to supply batteries to major electric vehicles such as Ioniq 5, EV6, and GV60, Kia, and Genesis," said a Hyundai Motor Group representative. "Through the establishment of this joint venture, we will strengthen our strategic partnership and stabilize the local procurement of battery cells to increase sales of electric vehicles in the U.S."
