South Korea’s LG Chem Ltd said on Tuesday it will invest more than $3 billion to build a battery cathode factory in Tennessee, as it ramps up plans to meet rising demand for U.S. electric vehicle components.
It’s one of the first major EV-related investments announced by a South Korean firm in the United States since a new U.S. law was passed in August that puts automakers and battery suppliers relying heavily on China for sourcing at a cost disadvantage.
Mass production is set to start outside of Clarksville in the second half of 2025 and the plant will create more than 850 jobs, LG Chem said in a statement. The plant is slated to have an annual production capacity of 120,000 tons of cathode materials by 2027, enough to power about 1.2 million electric vehicles, it added.