SK On will take the lead in strengthening energy storage system (ESS) safety in partnership with the Korea Electrical Safety Corporation (KESCO) Electrical Safety Research Institute. In the recent ESS market, technology to ensure fire safety has emerged as a core business competitiveness factor.
SK On said on the 27th that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the 26th at SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, with the Electrical Safety Research Institute for "joint research on advancing ESS fire safety and next-generation safety technologies."
The two sides plan to cooperate in various areas, including: ▲ advancing research and evaluation technologies for ESS fire safety ▲ joint research on new battery materials ▲ building international cooperation centered on G-SAFE (Global Safety Alliance for Power Grid and Energy Storage).
SK On will use the Energy Storage Research Center infrastructure of the Electrical Safety Research Institute to further raise the verification level of next-generation safety technologies such as a diagnostic system based on electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and immersion cooling.
The Energy Storage Research Center infrastructure, completed at the end of last year in Wanju, North Jeolla, can verify ESS performance and safety under extreme environmental conditions from minus 40 degrees to 80 degrees Celsius.
They will also push joint research on developing new materials, including improving the performance of existing lithium iron phosphate (LFP). The two companies have continued exchanges across ESS and battery safety technologies, including hosting a tour of SK On's Daejeon Future Technology Institute during the first G-SAFE event led by the Electrical Safety Research Institute last year.
Song Gil-mok, head of the Electrical Safety Research Institute, said, "With technological cooperation that covers safety evaluation in the ESS field and responses to international standards, we will take the lead in restoring Korea's ESS industry ecosystem and leading global technology."
Park Ki-su, head of SK On's Future Technology Institute, said, "The key to ESS competitiveness is safety and technology," and added, "While advancing next-generation safety technologies, we will expand collaboration with the domestic ESS ecosystem encompassing infrastructure, materials, and components to contribute to the growth of the battery industry."
SK On's ESS batteries are equipped with comprehensive pre-emptive fire prevention and post-incident response measures. For the first time in the industry, they apply EIS-based diagnostic technology that detects early warning signs to sense fire risks at least 30 minutes in advance, and only modules with warning signs can be separated and replaced like blocks.
SK On will also establish an ESS battery production line with an annual capacity of 3 GWh, the largest in Korea, by converting lines at its Seosan, South Chungcheong, plant this year. It plans to localize key materials used in LFP batteries for ESS—such as cathode materials, separators, and electrolytes—to build a domestic LFP battery supply chain ecosystem.