The US International Trade Commission (ITC) ruled in favor of South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution Ltd. in a trade secret case over SK Innovation Co. and issued a 10-year import ban on some of the latter's lithium-ion battery products.
The ruling affirms a preliminary judgment in February 2020 supporting LG's claims that SK stole its trade secrets for developing electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
According to LG Energy Solution, which is wholly owned by LG Chem Ltd., SK hired its former engineers to get sensitive information on LG's battery technology.
However, the ban issued by the ITC does not include SK's shipment of components for its clients' domestic production due to "public interests.".
Among SK's clients are Ford Motor, Volkswagen, and Kia.
SK Innovation may provide lithium-ion battery products for Ford Motor EV F-150 program for four years and for Volkswagen's EV production line in North America for two years.
SK Innovation has been building a factory in Georgia set for completion by 2022, which will produce EV batteries for Volkswagen and Ford.
A second plant is also being built on the site that would hire 2,600 people by 2024.
LG supplies batteries to Tesla, GM, Volkswagen, Hyundai, and a number of other automakers. It produces batteries in its Michigan plant and is building another factory in Ohio to supply Utlium Cells in a joint venture with GM.


Missouri Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Starbucks’ Diversity and Inclusion Policies
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran
South Korea Assures U.S. on Trade Deal Commitments Amid Tariff Concerns
Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says AI Investment Boom Is Just Beginning as NVDA Shares Surge
Fed Governor Lisa Cook Warns Inflation Risks Remain as Rates Stay Steady
Instagram Outage Disrupts Thousands of U.S. Users
Oil Prices Slip as U.S.–Iran Talks Ease Supply Disruption Fears
Nvidia Nears $20 Billion OpenAI Investment as AI Funding Race Intensifies
Bank of Japan Signals Readiness for Near-Term Rate Hike as Inflation Nears Target
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record
SoftBank Shares Slide After Arm Earnings Miss Fuels Tech Stock Sell-Off
SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates
Trump Endorses Japan’s Sanae Takaichi Ahead of Crucial Election Amid Market and China Tensions
Once Upon a Farm Raises Nearly $198 Million in IPO, Valued at Over $724 Million
Nvidia, ByteDance, and the U.S.-China AI Chip Standoff Over H200 Exports
Nasdaq Proposes Fast-Track Rule to Accelerate Index Inclusion for Major New Listings 



