Robin Zeng, founder and chairman of Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL), is set to visit South Korea later this month, marking his first official trip to the neighboring country in nearly three years.
He will accompany Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Gyeongju, Korea, during the last week of October.
During his three-day visit, he will meet with Chung Euisun, chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, one of its key customers, and is expected to deepen the partnership as both grapple with hefty tariffs from the US.
CATL has already supplied lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for Hyundai Motor Co.’s Kona and Kia Corp.’s Niro and Ray electric vehicles.
Kia’s EV 5 also runs on CATL’s nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) batteries, a segment previously considered South Korea’s stronghold.
For Hyundai, which also encompasses Kia, CATL is seen as an attractive partner in terms of local sourcing efficiency and cost reduction.
CATL’s batteries are about 10-20% cheaper than those produced in Korea.
With CATL building large-scale production facilities in Hungary and other parts of Europe, it is well-positioned to supply batteries for vehicles manufactured at Hyundai’s European plants.
NCC BATTERIES
Battery industry officials say CATL, the world’s largest EV and energy storage system (ESS) battery manufacturer, is looking to leverage South Korea’s supply chain for NCM batteries.
Zeng is dividing his time to meet with the chief executives of leading battery materials producers, including EcoPro Co. and L&F Co., according to the sources.
Last month, a big delegation of CATL’s purchasing executives and engineers visited Korean companies specializing in materials or devices used to produce NCM batteries. The companies include People & Technology Inc., Creative & Innovative System Corp. (CIS), Hanwha Momentum Co. and PhilEnergy Co.
CATL launched its Korean branch in the first quarter of this year.
MEETING WITH HEADS OF KOREAN RIVAL FIRMS
Zeng is also arranging one-on-one meetings with heads of other leading Korean conglomerates, including SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and Kim Dong-kwan, chairman of chemicals-to-defense-focused Hanwha Group.
SK and LG are the parents of battery makers SK On Co. and LG Energy Solution Ltd., respectively.
ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS
CATL is also setting its sights on South Korea’s ESS market.
Battery industry officials say the Chinese battery giant may join forces with domestic materials and equipment firms to market ESS.
South Korea plans to spend 40 trillion won ($28 billion) by 2038 to deploy about 23 gigawatts (GW) of ESS nationwide by 2038.
By Sang-Hoon Sung and Wu-Sub Kim
uphoon@hankyung.com
Yeonhee Kim edited this article.
