Ecopro Innovation Expands Lithium Supply Capacity with New Samsung SDI Contract
Ecopro Innovation and Samsung SDI have signed a long-term lithium supply contract, ensuring a total supply capacity of approximately 154,000 tons of lithium hydroxide distributed across their business sites and Hungarian plants. This agreement will enable Ecopro Innovation to continue its operations with Samsung SDI in Korea until 2033.
Ecopro Innovation has been at the forefront of lithium hydroxide conversion technology for anode materials. In October 2021, the company became the first in Korea to successfully mass-produce lithium hydroxide for secondary batteries, subsequently increasing production volumes supplied to Ecopro BM and Samsung SDI.
To expand its external sales volume, Ecopro Innovation is in discussions with car manufacturers and secondary battery companies. The enforcement of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has intensified the shift away from China, positioning Ecopro Innovation as a significant player capable of producing composite products.
Additionally, Ecopro Innovation is collaborating with the Australian lithium company Ioneer. They have signed a long-term supply contract for 7,000 tons of industrial lithium carbonate annually from Nevada, USA, and an MOU for mine development to produce lithium from lithium clay. The partnership aims to jointly develop technology for extracting and producing lithium hydroxide, with plans to build a conversion plant in North America.
In this joint venture, Ioneer will provide buried lithium clay from its Nevada mine to Ecopro Innovation free of charge and collaborate on sharing profits from lithium production.
Ecopro Innovation currently operates a lithium commercialization manufacturing plant, producing 13,000 tons of hydrocarbons annually since October 2021. The plant also produces industrial lithium carbonate and battery-grade high-purity lithium hydroxide from recycled lithium.
Following the completion of its second factory on the Pohang campus in March, Ecopro Innovation is planning to construct a third factory in Pohang Blue Valley to meet additional contract demands. Furthermore, the company is building a factory in Hungary, expected to be completed by the end of 2024, to establish an overseas production base.
If domestic and international factory construction proceeds smoothly, Ecopro Innovation's lithium hydroxide production capacity is projected to expand to 79,000 tons by 2028.
