(Original title: Office of the Korean president: Tesla to expand cooperation with South Korea, Musk plans to build another factory in Asia)
November 23 News from the Financial Associated Press (Edited by Zhou Ziyi)Tesla CEO Elon Musk has expressed his willingness to expand cooperation with South Korean companies in the supply chain, according to South Korean President Yoon Seok-yue’s office on Wednesday.
According to South Korea’s presidential office, Musk held an online meeting with Yoon Suk-yue. at the meeting,Musk reveals plans to build another Tesla Gigafactory in Asia。
Currently, Tesla’s main factory in Asia is located in Shanghai, China. The production capacity of the Shanghai factory has recently doubled. In August, the factory also reached the milestone of launching the millionth vehicle.
Musk has expressed his willingness to actively invest in South Korea’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure and significantly expand supply chain cooperation with South Korean companies. Musk expects auto parts purchases by South Korean companies to grow to at least $10 billion by 2023.
Musk also said that he will make an investment decision after comprehensively evaluating investment conditions such as manpower and technology.
The above statements all come from the Office of the President of South Korea and Tesla has yet to respond.
Basis for cooperation
LG Energy Solution Ltd. is Tesla’s long-term battery supplier, and Tesla already buys a lot of auto parts from LG.
Jeon Hyeyoung, an analyst at South Korea’s Daol Investment & Securities Co., said last month that LG Energy’s outlook is positive, in part due to increased production at Tesla’s Shanghai plant.
LG Energy said in June that it would spend $452 million to build a 4680 battery production line. Following LG Energy, Samsung SDI is also considering building a new 4680 battery production line to supply Tesla and others. other.
The 4680 battery is Tesla’s third generation battery, a cylindrical battery with larger size, lower cost, and higher energy density. Tesla said a new generation of batteries is the key to unlocking cheaper and more mainstream EVs.
South Korea sees electric vehicles, rechargeable batteries and semiconductors as key drivers of South Korea’s economic growth. There are two major automakers in South Korea: Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, as well as battery makers LG Energy, SK On, Samsung SDI and others.
South Korea isn’t the first country in Asia to “throw an olive branch” at Musk. Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in August that he wanted Tesla to make electric vehicles in Indonesia, not just batteries. Widodo also expressed his willingness to take the time to persuade Musk.
