LG Energy Solution, GM To Build $2.1 Billion EV Battery Plant In U.S.

South Korea's LG Energy Solution (LGES) and General Motors (GM.N)  have announced plans to spend $2.1 billion to build electric vehicle (EV) battery plant in the U.S.

LGES and GM are expected to fund the project equally via Ultium Cells, their U.S.-based battery joint venture, for what will be their third joint battery plant in the United States, LG Chem's regulatory filings showed.

LGES made this known on Tuesday but declined to provide detail on the location or production capacity of the new plant.

The announcement came ahead of the company's market debut later this week after launching South Korea's biggest-ever IPO.

The IPO attracted $12.8 trillion worth of bids from institutional investors and $96 billion from retail investors. read more

The IPO price values LGES at about 70.2 trillion won ($58.57 billion) and will make it South Korea's third most-valuable company after Samsung Electronics Co (005930. KS) and SK Hynix Inc (000660. KS).

($1 = 1,198.5800 won)

LGES commands more than 20 percent of the global electric vehicle battery market and supplies Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) and Hyundai Motor Co (005380. KS), among others.

It is already building two plants with GM in Ohio and Tennessee to manufacture 70 GWh of batteries, which could power about 1 million EVs by 2024.