EcoPro to expedite European market entry with Hungarian plant

EcoPro founder Lee Dong-chae, front row left, presents a plaque of appreciation to Debrecen Mayor Laszlo Papp, front row right, during the completion ceremony of EcoPro's Hungarian plant in the city, Friday (local time). Courtesy of EcoPro

Battery materials firm EcoPro has completed its cathode plant in Hungary, heralding an aggressive expansion in the local market based on strong responsiveness to regional regulatory requirements.

According to the company Sunday, it held the completion ceremony of its new plant in Debrecen, the second-largest city in Hungary, on Friday (local time). The ceremony was attended by EcoPro founder Lee Dong-chae, CEO Song Ho-jun, SK On CEO Lee Seok-hee, Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency CEO Istvan Joo, Debrecen Mayor Laszlo Papp and other executives of the company’s key clients.

“Thanks to the full-fledged and prompt support from the Hungarian government, we were able to complete the first European manufacturing base operated by a Korean cathode company,” Lee said. “The plant’s completion marks a new beginning for EcoPro and Europe to shape the future together at a time when the electric vehicle (EV) industry is rapidly evolving.”

Occupying a 440,000-square-meter plot of land, the plant houses EcoPro BM, which manufactures cathode material; EcoPro Innovation, which processes lithium; and EcoPro AP, which manufactures industrial oxygen and hydrogen.

The plant has an annual capacity of 54,000 tons of cathode materials, enough to supply approximately 600,000 EVs, as well as 8,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year and 16,000 cubic meters of oxygen per hour.

From next year, EcoPro will manufacture high-nickel ternary cathodes, including nickel-cobalt-aluminum and nickel-cobalt-manganese, and plans to expand midrange products such as mid-nickel cathodes and lithium iron phosphate. When its expansion is completed, the plant’s overall capacity will stand at 108,000 tons per year, and EcoPro Group’s annual capacity will reach 300,000 tons.

The plant is expected to draw strong interest from cell makers and carmakers, as its completion comes along with the enforcement of the European Union’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The CRMA is aimed at securing the supply of strategic raw materials to EU member states.

With the region increasingly requiring localized supply chains for key battery raw materials, EcoPro said it is now positioned to secure new clients as the first Korean cathode producer to complete a manufacturing facility in Europe. Hungary hosts the manufacturing bases of cell makers such as SK On, Samsung SDI and CATL, as well as global carmakers including BMW.

EcoPro said it will build a competitive production structure by securing low-cost nickel through its ongoing nickel project in Indonesia while producing cathode materials at its two manufacturing sites in Korea and the new Hungary plant, to enhance both technological and price competitiveness.