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South Korean battery materials producer EcoPro Company announced last week that it plans to expand its global production capacity of battery precursor materials for electric vehicles (EVs), as it looks to meet the requirements of the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Despite US President-elect Donald Trump having declared during his election campaign that he plans to repeal the IRA, which was introduced by the current Biden administration, EcoPro plans to step up its investments in precursor production capacity in countries which qualify for the IRA incentives.
The IRA programme provides tax rebates worth up to US$7,500 to US buyers of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) provided they have a minimum US content or from affiliated countries, which do not include China.
Speaking at an investor conference last week, EcoPro’s CEO Song Ho-jun confirmed his company plans to step up investments in countries such as Indonesia, which has large reserves of nickel – a key material for batteries. He told investors: “We do not know how the US will handle the IRA after President Trump takes office, but the direction to exclude China is clear. The integrated cathode material project in Indonesia will be crucial.”
The company revealed it aims to have in place a global production capacity of 710,000 tons cathode material and 255,000 tons of precursor annually by 2030, with revenues projected to grow to KRW32trn (US$23bn) and an operating margin of 12%. Its joint venture with China's GEM Company will also be crucial to achieving its global growth goals.
"EcoPro expands global capacity to meet regional demand" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand.
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