DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Liontown controls two major lithium deposits in Western Australia, including its flagship Kathleen Valley project slated for first production in mid-2024, which is among the world's largest and highest-grade hard rock lithium deposits. North Carolina-based Albemarle is the world's biggest lithium producer with major facilities in Chile, China and Western Australia where it holds stakes in two mines and is building a lithium hydroxide processing plant near Perth. Albemarle had offered A$2.50 per share after two previous offers, Liontown said in an exchange filing. Albemarle said its "compelling" bid offered a material premium to Liontown shareholders who would benefit from its chemical conversion abilities and existing links with Liontown's customers. Liontown also said RT Lithium Ltd, a subsidiary of Albemarle, had built a near 2.2% stake through on-market purchases.

☆ South Korea's LGES revives Arizona battery factory plan with $5.6 bln investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, March 24 (Reuters) - South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) (373220.KS) said on Friday it would invest 7.2 trillion won ($5.58 billion) to build a battery factory in Arizona, reviving a project paused last year due to adverse economic conditions. Friday's announcement comes after LGES in January said it had been in "active discussion" with Tesla and electric vehicle startups to supply batteries from the proposed factory. Automakers and EV battery producers are racing to set up manufacturing in the United States to take advantage of federal subsidies that could generate up to $45 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to offset the costs of production. LGES, which supplies Tesla, General Motors Co (GM.N) and others, also has production sites in South Korea, China, Poland, Canada and Indonesia. Shares of LGES were trading down 1.6% versus a 0.4% fall in the benchmark KOSPI (.KS11) as of 0620 GMT.

☆ Honda to move Accord production to Indiana as part of EV shift
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 14 (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co's U.S. unit said on Tuesday it would move production of its Accord sedan to Indiana in 2025 after assembling the model in Marysville, Ohio for more than 40 years, as part of its shift to electric vehicle (EV) production. Honda said last year it was separately investing $700 million to retool three Ohio plants for electric vehicle production by 2026, including Marysville. Marysville will begin preparing for EV production as early as January by consolidating its two production lines to one to enable it to begin building the EV infrastructure, the company said. Honda began assembling the Accord at its Marysville in November 1982, making it the first Japanese automaker to produce cars in the United States. Honda said Accord production will be transferred to its Indiana auto plant, which builds the Civic Hatchback and CR-V.Honda's transmission plant in Georgia will dedicate one production line to e-axle production - a key EV component - and its Anna, Ohio engine plant will shift production of some engine components to a Honda engine plant in Alabama to prepare for production of battery cases for EV models, the company said.

☆ Indonesia to provide incentives to boost EV sales starting March 20 - official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, March 6 (Reuters) - Indonesia will provide incentives to boost sales of electric vehicles (EVs) starting March 20 as part of efforts to accelerate adoption and attract investment into production, senior cabinet minister Luhut Pandjaitan said on Monday. The programme will cover sales of 200,000 electric motorbikes and 35,900 electric cars, said Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita. Officials have been trying to attract investment from electric car makers such as the United States' Tesla and China's BYD Auto. South Korea's LG and Hyundai have started construction on plants to assemble batteries and electric cars in the Southeast Asian country. "We believe with this programme, (auto companies) would be more attracted," Agus said, adding that companies eligible to join the programme are required to have a plant in Indonesia.

The government is aiming to reach 2 million sales of electric motorbike in 2025 as the Indonesia attracts billion of dollars of investment in processing its rich nickel reserves into battery materials. Indonesia sold less than 40,000 electric motorbikes between 2019 and 2022, while its total motorbike sales in 2022 alone were 5.22 million units, industry data showed. Now their (annual) electric motorbike sales have reached more than 30 million," he said. Indonesia's government is targeting as much as 300,000 units of electric motorbike sales for 2023. The plant would have 10 Gigawatt hour capacity which would be enough to power 200,000 electric cars or up to 2.5 million electric scooters.

☆ Investments in Indonesia's nickel industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Here are some of the major investment deals involving nickel in Indonesia:Jan. 2020: Indonesia bans exports of unprocessed nickel to attract investment in downstream processing. Dec. 2020: Indonesia's investment ministry signs an MOU with LG Energy Solution (373220.KS) on integrated EV battery investment with total investment of $9.8 billion. 2021: Indonesia establishes the Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC), a joint venture of state owned enterprises to cooperate with foreign investors in developing an EV battery supply chain. Jan. 2022: Indonesia's Investment Ministry signs an MoU with Foxconn (2317.TW), Gogoro Inc, IBC and Indika Energy (INDY.JK) for investment in electric vehicle and battery development. Sept 2022: Vale Indonesia signs an agreement with Zhejiang Huayou to build a second plant to produce nickel MHP with 60,000 tonnes capacity.

☆ LG Display to halt production of liquid crystal display TV panels in South Korea
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL, Dec 23 (Reuters) - South Korea's LG Display Co Ltd (034220.KS) said on Friday it plans to halt the production of its liquid-crystal display (LCD) TV panels in South Korea due to intensifying competition. The Apple Inc (AAPL.O) supplier expects the decision to halt production of LCD TV panels would not have impact on its normal business activities, LG Display said in a regulatory filing. Reporting by Hyunsu Yim and Heekyong Yang; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Korea's LGBTQ community confronts crushing headwinds in fight for equality
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Michael Mitsanas | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

NBC News spoke with South Korean lawmakers, human rights organizations and dozens of LGBTQ South Koreans in three of the country’s largest cities: Seoul, Daegu and Busan. Most say a bill that would outlaw discrimination against all minority groups — including the LGBTQ community — is the critical first step toward legal equality. The documentary filmmaker turned progressive lawmaker calls herself an advocate for this country’s LGBTQ community. This, he added, “includes South Korea.”While support for a comprehensive nondiscrimination bill is strong in South Korea, Jang concedes that the odds of one passing, at least in the near future, are slim. The country’s conservative president and People Power Party oppose a comprehensive nondiscrimination bill, while the left-leaning Democratic Party has expressed lukewarm support.

Musk had made the remark in a video call with President Yoon Suk-yeol, adding that the company planned to step up cooperation with South Korea on supply chains, Yoon's office said. As Yoon was aware of Tesla's plans to build a factory in Asia in the future, his office said, Yoon asked Musk to build the factory in South Korea. In response, Musk said he considered South Korea to be one of the top candidates and would make the decision after reviewing investment conditions in other countries, including labour quality, technology level and production infrastructure. "We expect to buy components worth more than $10 billion from South Korean firms in 2023 as we significantly expand supply chain cooperation with South Korean companies," Yoon's office quoted Musk as saying. Yoon said in the discussion he would reform unreasonable regulations that hindered investment by global tech companies, according to Yoon's office.

☆ LG Chem to invest over $3 billion to build U.S. battery cathode plant
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Heekyong Yang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SEOUL, Nov 22 (Reuters) - South Korea's LG Chem Ltd (051910.KS) 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. Mass production is set to start in the second half of 2025 and the plant will create more than 850 jobs, LG Chem said in a statement. LG Chem is expected to supply cathode materials to Ultium Cells, a battery joint venture between General Motors (GM.N) and LG Chem's subsidiary LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) (373220.KS). GM has said it will use NCMA battery cathodes from LG Chem for a range of EVs using Ultium-branded batteries. At this month's G20 summit, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol asked U.S. President Joe Biden to prevent discriminatory measures against South Korean companies, his office said.

It wants 3.8 billion pounds ($4.4 billion) to build a gigafactory in northern England but its plans are hanging by a thread as it struggles to lure enough investment. French battery startup Verkor, for example, announced on Wednesday that it had raised 250 million euros ($249 million) to fund a megafactory. The European Battery Alliance (EBA) acknowledges Asian firms, and Chinese companies in particular, are likely to increase their market share in the coming years, helped by their track record and offtake agreements. "Even if we have the production in Europe, it doesn't mean we have the know-how or the control," she said. The EU has approved 6.1 billion euros since 2019 in funding by member states for battery research and innovation while Britain has a 1 billion pound fund to support investments in EV supply chains.

☆ Asia-Pacific markets fall; Bank of Japan expected to keep rates unchanged
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, April 25, 2022. Shares in the Asia-Pacific fell ahead of the Bank of Japan's interest rate decision and a slew of companies in the region reporting earnings. The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 0.89% in early trade, while the Topix dipped 0.51%. The Bank of Japan is expected to keep rates at ultra-low levels, according to forecasts in a Reuters poll. Some Chinese airlines listed in Hong Kong will report earnings, along with electric vehicle maker BYD.

☆ LG Energy Solution swings to Q3 profit on strong EV battery demand, beats estimates
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc supplier LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) (373220.KS) on Wednesday swung to a profit in the third quarter on the back of strong electric vehicle (EV) battery demand and favourable foreign exchange rates. South Korea's LGES, which also sells EV batteries to automakers including General Motors Co (GM.N), Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) among others, reported operating profit of 522 billion won ($365.12 million)for the July-September period, compared with a 373 billion won loss a year earlier and a Refinitiv SmartEstimate of 488 billion won profit drawn from 17 analysts. Revenue for the quarter rose 90% to 7.6 trillion won, LGES said in a regulatory filing. Shares of LGES, carved out of LG Chem Ltd (051910.KS) in a market debut in January, were trading up 1.8% in morning trade, versus the benchmark KOSPI's (.KS11) 0.3% rise. ($1 = 1,429.6500 won)Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Jihoon Lee; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Syrah Resources to explore graphite supply to LG Energy Solution, shares soar
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 20 (Reuters) - Australia's Syrah Resources Ltd (SYR.AX) said on Thursday it will evaluate supplying a key lithium-ion battery component to South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd (373220.KS), sending its shares to a more than four-year high. Graphite anodes' popularity has soared as companies race to secure supplies of battery materials used in electric vehicles amid a global push towards cleaner transportation and fuel. The company added that it was developing the facility as a natural graphite AAM supply alternative for U.S. battery supply chains, with production targeted to start in the September 2023 quarter. Shares of Syrah jumped as much as 17.6% to A$2.21, their highest level since October 2018. Last month, the South Korean battery maker inked cobalt and lithium supply deals with three Canadian miners.

☆ REUTERS EVENTS-Stellantis eyeing two more N. American battery plants by 2030
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DETROIT, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Stellantis (STLA.MI) will need four electric-vehicle battery plants in North America by 2030, the company's North American chief operating officer said on Tuesday. The automaker has already announced two joint-venture battery plants - one in Indiana and the other in Canada - and will need two more plants in the United States, Canada or Mexico, Mark Stewart said at a Reuters Events auto conference in Detroit. We will need four plants by 2030." Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Indiana plant is a joint venture with South Korea's Samsung SDI (006400.KS), while the Canada plant will be built with South Korea's LG Energy Solution (373220.KS). Asked whether Stellantis was open to the workers at the joint-venture battery plants being represented by the United Auto workers union, Stewart said it was up to the workers but the company was open to the idea.

☆ Canada, South Korea seek deeper cooperation on critical minerals
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Steve Scherer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OTTAWA, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Friday agreed to deepen cooperation on critical minerals used in electric vehicles (EVs) batteries as both countries seek to cut emissions to fight climate change. "Canada, as a global leader in the production of minerals, and Korea, a major semiconductor and battery maker - each play crucial roles in global supply chains," Yoon said through an interpreter. China is currently by far the dominant global supplier of critical minerals used in EVs. Canada and South Korea are already cooperating in the sector, Trudeau pointed out. To that end, both countries agreed to develop a memorandum of understanding in the coming months to "support clean energy transition and energy security, including with respect to critical minerals".

Search resuls for: "South Korea's LG"

16 mentions found