South Korean electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturer, LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES), announced this week that it has completed the acquisition of a battery plant in the US from its Ultium Cells LLC joint venture with General Motors (GM).

Ultium Cells, a 50:50 joint venture between LGES and GM established in 2022, had three battery cell manufacturing plants in the US before the sale: in Warren, Ohio; Spring Hill, Tennessee; and Lansing, Michigan. GM originally announced that it planned to sell its stake in the Lansing facility at the end of last year, after reviewing its battery cell requirements following slower-than-expected growth in battery electric vehicle (BEV) demand in North America last year.

LGES has now taken full control of the Lansing facility for KRW 3 trillion (US$2.14 billion), in a move described by the company as a "strategic decision" aimed at reducing the company's “burden of investing in new facilities” and improving operational efficiency in the US. Earlier this year the company announced that it planned to cut its facility investments by up to 30% in 2025 compared with KRW 13 trillion won invested in 2023.

The company pointed out that local https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Supply-Chain/LG-Energy-acquires-GM-s-Michigan-EV-battery-plant-for-2bn production has become a key factor in securing a competitive edge in the US automotive supply chain, following the recent import duty hikes by the US Government.