Hyundai and LG Plan $4.3 Billion Battery Plant in Georgia

Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solutions announced plans on Thursday to build a $4.3 billion electric vehicle battery plant in Georgia, the latest clean energy facility to come to the state.

The project is expected to bring 3,000 new jobs to southeast Georgia by the end of 2025. It is the second battery manufacturing plant that Hyundai is developing in the state, which has used incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act to open new facilities. Hyundai announced in December that it had partnered with SK On, a Korean electric vehicle battery developer, to build a plant in Bartow County.

“Hyundai Motor Group is focusing on its electrification efforts to secure a leadership position in the global auto industry,” Jaehoon Chang, president and chief executive of Hyundai Motor Company, said in a statement.

The facility is planned for Bryan County, Ga., near the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, which is under construction, the company said. The Metaplant facility will produce Hyundai, Genesis and Kia electric vehicles.

Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Democrat, said in an interview that incentives for clean energy manufacturing in the Inflation Reduction Act made the plant possible.

“This is yet another huge win for Georgia,” he said.

In April, Mr. Ossoff led a trade mission to South Korea, where he met with senior executives from both companies.

The announcement follows a decision in January by Hanwha QCells to tap the federal climate and tax measure to expand its operations with a $2.5 billion facility in Georgia that will produce solar panels and their components.

Ivan Penn is a Los Angeles-based reporter covering alternative energy. Before coming to The New York Times in 2018 he covered utility and energy issues at The Tampa Bay Times and The Los Angeles Times. @ivanlpenn

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