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New LS-L&F battery plant completed in Saemangeum

Published: 30 Sep. 2025, 18:34 Updated: 30 Sep. 2025, 19:44

LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-eun delivers a welcome speech during the completion ceremony for the LS-L&F Battery Solution plant at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex in Gunsan, North Jeolla, on Sept. 30. [LS]

LS-L & F Battery Solution (LLBS), a joint venture between LS Group and L & F, held a completion ceremony Tuesday for its new precursor plant at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex in Gunsan, North Jeolla.

Precursors are raw materials used to produce cathodes, one of the most critical components of lithium-ion batteries. The facility is expected to accelerate Korea’s domestic production of precursors and reduce its dependence on Chinese imports, which account for around 80 percent of the global supply.

The new plant was built with a 1 trillion won ($713.1 million) investment on a 132,000-square-meter (32.6-acre) site. It is expected to create over 1,000 jobs and help revitalize the local economy.

LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-eun, L & F Chairman Heo Jae-hong, North Jeolla Gov. Kim Kwan-young and Saemangeum Development Agency Administrator Kim Eui-keum attended the inauguration ceremony.

“We’ve established a key hub for K-battery materials here in Saemangeum to lead the global supply chain with fully domestic technology and to reduce reliance on China, which dominates the precursor market,” Koo said.

“Despite concerns over a demand cliff, the U.S. market is gaining momentum thanks to sweeping tax cuts under the Trump administration, which are accelerating the shift away from China,” he added. “LLBS will drive localization across the battery value chain and help Korea become a global leader in battery materials.”

LS Group is accelerating its “ambidextrous management” strategy, which involves strengthening core businesses in electricity, power and materials while pursuing future growth in batteries, electric vehicles and semiconductors. LLBS was founded in October 2023 as part of this strategy, combining LS's industrial expertise with L & F’s specialization in high-nickel cathode materials.

LLBS began trial production and aims to produce 20,000 tons of precursors by 2026, 40,000 tons by 2027 and 120,000 tons by 2029 — enough to power 1.3 million electric vehicles annually. Global demand for cathode precursors is projected to rise from 3.2 million tons in 2023 to 7.77 million tons by 2032, with an average annual growth rate of 12 percent, according to market tracker SNE Research.

LS Group’s nonferrous metal affiliate, LS MnM, is also investing 1.8 trillion won to build nickel sulfate plants — a core precursor material — in Ulsan and Saemangeum. The Ulsan plant is set to be completed by 2027, followed by the Saemangeum plant in 2029, enabling a combined annual production capacity of 62,000 tons of nickel sulfate.

The group aims to establish a fully localized battery value chain in Korea: LS MnM will supply nickel sulfate to LLBS, which will then produce precursors and deliver them to cathode manufacturer L & F.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHOI SUN-EUL [[email protected]]