Dongwha to invest over $70 million to build plant in Tennessee

The site for Dongwha Electrolyte's new factory in Clarksville, Tennessee / Courtesy of Dongwha Electrolyte

By Park Jae-hyuk

Dongwha Electrolyte has determined the size of investments for its new electrolyte manufacturing plant in the U.S., as well as the factory's production capacity, the affiliate of Dongwha Enterprise, said Monday.

The company will invest over $70 million to build the new manufacturing plant on a 162,000-square-meter site in Clarksville, Tennessee.

The factory's annual production capacity will be 80,000 tons. The construction of the Tennessee plant will therefore increase Dongwha Electrolyte's annual electrolyte production capacity here and overseas to 150,000 tons.

With the aim of finishing the construction by the third quarter of 2024, the electrolyte producer will start building the new U.S. factory during the second quarter of this year. The company plans to begin mass production during the fourth quarter of 2024.

“We expect the Tennessee plant to play its role as an outpost toward the rapidly-growing North American battery materials market,” Dongwha Electrolyte CEO Lee SiJoon said. “With the Tennessee plant, we will promptly supply our high-quality products to the North American market, based on our verified technical skills.”

He added that the company will continue to look for investment opportunities to attain technological supremacy in the North American market.