Samsung SDI, General Motors join forces to set up EV battery plant in US

Samsung SDI, the battery manufacturing arm of the Samsung Group, has teamed up with General Motors to build a new electric vehicle battery plant in the United States. Through their alliance, the companies are spending $3.8 billion on the project.

Samsung SDI and General Motors are aiming to produce up to 50 GWh per year through this deal. It was said that the American automaker tapped the South Korean battery cell maker for a partnership deal as its original JV partner, LG Energy, ran into a problem of staff shortage which means it may not be able to meet the production demand.

According to The Korea Herald, the companies are expected to build their joint battery factory using KRW5 trillion or about $3.8 billion investment. This new partnership that was revealed the past weekend marks General Motors and Samsung SDI’s first cooperation for the EV battery manufacturing business.

Their alliance is expected to become official some time this week as they are scheduled to sign the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Wednesday, March 8, in Michigan. Business insiders disclosed that the two companies are currently meeting up for last-minute negotiations for exact details in the agreement, such as the location of the plant and production volume of their EV battery facility.

Once the MOU is signed, General Motors and Samsung SDI are estimated to break ground by the end of 2023. By 2026, the facility will produce prismatic and cylindrical battery cells. An official of GM and Samsung SDI said they could not provide further details about the deal at this time.

Finally, General Motors and Samsung SDI’s partnership will be the latter’s second joint project in North America. In May of last year, it also announced its plans to construct a battery plant in Indiana worth $2.5 billion. This project is in partnership with Stellantis automobile company.