LG Energy Solution (LGES) is investing $1.7 billion and creating 1,200 jobs at its current location in Holland. LGES’ expansion will quintuple the plant’s capacity to help produce battery components into the future as Michigan’s electric vehicle industry grows.
The LGES expansion announcement comes just two months after GM announced its $7 billion investment in the state, which includes up to $2.5 billion to build Ultium Cell LLC’s third U.S. battery cell plant in the city of Lansing and Delta Township, a joint venture between GM and LG. The two companies have a longstanding relationship, and GM acted as a key partner in bringing LG to Michigan in 2010. The Holland investment will fall under the LGES entity, which recently completed a record-breaking IPO in South Korea.
LG Energy Solution, formerly known as LG Chem Michigan, manufactures large lithium-ion polymer battery cells and packs for electric vehicles. The company has had a presence in Holland since 2010 when it built its first EV battery plant in the U.S. and now has 1,495 employees in Michigan.
As the future of the electric vehicle industry grows, LG Energy Solution needs the additional capacity to allow for the production, testing and storage of materials needed for battery manufacturing. The expansion includes the construction of several new facilities on LGES’s existing footprint in Holland.
The state-of-the-art Michigan plant will use the most advanced and efficient battery cell manufacturing processes. Particularly, the facility will manufacture the company’s new long cell design batteries with improved energy density thanks to cutting-edge technologies that allow engineers to more fully utilize the space within the battery pack. The long cell design batteries are expected to advance EV’s driving range and ESS’s energy storage, and at the same time, simplify the overall structure of battery pack.
The project further boosts Michigan’s leadership in the electric vehicle and high-tech manufacturing industries and brings a large number of good jobs to Michigan workers. The company has been one of the largest employers in the Holland community since 2010 and provides full benefits and training opportunities to its employees. This project will also cement LGES’s commitment to Michigan and will have a tremendous positive impact on Michigan’s economy.
The Michigan Strategic Fund approved a package of incentives to support the company’s new battery manufacturing facilities:
- A $10 million Michigan Business Development Program performance-based grant for the creation of up to 1,200 jobs;
- A $10 million Jobs Ready Michigan performance-based grant to assist with job-related training;
- A 20-year Renaissance Zone to the city of Holland, valued at an estimated $132.6 million;
- Up to $36.5 million in Community Development Block Grant funds to Allegan County to reimburse the company for the purchase of machinery and equipment, with an additional $50,000 for grant administration.
