By Choi Sung-jin
For the Korean makers of batteries for electric cars, it might have come as big letdown that Elon Musk chose Japan’s Panasonic as the supplier for his Tesla 3 model last month.
On various recent occasions, however, the top managers of Korea’s three largest battery makers LG Chem, Samsung SDI and SK Innovation said they welcome the sensation brought about by Tesla electric cars.
Industry experts also agreed. “Korean companies don’t supply their batteries to Tesla cars, but the explosive popular interest will serve as a big plus factor for competitive domestic makers,” an analyst said.
According to sources in the auto and chemical industries, the Tesla Model 3 has more than 400,000 orders, ushering in an era of electric cars. Riding on its popularity, battery supplier Panasonic is also enjoying brisk business.
Korean battery makers, which have signed supply contracts with global automakers, are yet to produce such a big hit, watching how the Tesla-Panasonic team fares.
Some industry analysts worry the Japanese company has taken away the industrial initiative but CEOs of domestic battery makers said it is not a crisis but an opportunity.
Park Jin-su, vice chairman of LG Chem, recently said: “The larger the electric car market grows, the better for our company.” Asked whether LG Chem’s battery can be supplied to Tesla models, he said: “That’s difficult to say, but we are paying attention to the growing market.”
LG Chem has global competitiveness in battery technology and has signed with GM, Daimler and Renault to supply several million batteries for their electric cars, industry sources said.
At a news conference last week, Chung Cheol-gil, vice chairman of SK Innovation, said: “If this is a marathon, the electric car battery business has not even reached the one-kilometer point. Battery makers will be promoting this industry not as competitors but as cooperators for now.”
Samsung SDI plans to invest 1 trillion won ($865 million) this year into its battery sector, thinking technology and price will determine winners in this rapidly expanding market. At its extraordinary shareholder meeting early this year, CEO Cho Nam-seong said: “We will invest 3 trillion won by 2020 to make this a globally competitive company.”