SKC has scrapped its plan to enter the cathode materials business, a core battery material, after four years.
SKC said on the 31st that it canceled its plan to enter the next-generation cathode materials business in a disclosure on future business and management plans. Earlier, in September 2021, SKC announced that it would enter the next-generation cathode and anode materials businesses. At the time, SKC declared a shift to a business structure centered on mobility materials, made battery materials a key growth pillar, and said it would pursue expansion of the copper foil business along with entry into next-generation anode and cathode materials.
SKC initially drew up a plan to invest 5 trillion won from 2021 to 2025. However, SKC disclosed that the actual investment amounted to 4.4 trillion won as of the day. SKC said, "As the electric vehicle chasm has prolonged, investment and production across the secondary battery industry have shrunk, and in light of intensifying competition in the global secondary battery value chain, we conducted a review of long-term profitability."
SKC will cancel its entry into the cathode materials business but maintain its stance of expanding the anode materials and copper foil businesses. SKC formed a consortium with private equity fund managers and invested in Nexion, a British silicon anode materials technology company. In addition, SK Nexilis, SKC's copper foil business company, has copper foil production bases in Korea, Malaysia, and Poland. Separately, it is considering a plan to transfer part of the equipment at its domestic Jeongeup plant to Uzbekistan.