EcoPro held a first shipment ceremony for high-nickel cathode materials at its Debrecen, Hungary, cathode plant and began full-scale mass production. EcoPro plans to use the Hungary plant, aligned with tighter regulations within Europe, as a strategic base to accelerate its push into the European electric vehicle (EV) market.
EcoPro said on the 10th that it held a shipment ceremony on the 8th (local time) at its Hungary plant for high-nickel nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) products supplied to a European original equipment manufacturer (OEM).
The Debrecen, Hungary, plant covers about 440,000 square meters. EcoPro BM, which produces cathode materials, EcoPro Innovation, which handles lithium processing, and EcoPro AP, which produces industrial oxygen and nitrogen, are located there.
EcoPro BM's annual production capacity (CAPA) for cathode materials is 54,000 tons, enough to supply about 600,000 electric vehicles. EcoPro Innovation supplies 8,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year, and EcoPro AP supplies 16,000 cubic meters of oxygen per hour.
Starting with this initial batch, EcoPro BM plans to gradually ramp up output and begin mass production of high-nickel cathode materials to supply another global automotive OEM within the year. In addition to NCA, it is also expected to build a dedicated nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) line to produce high-nickel NCM cathode materials tailored for European customers.
EcoPro plans to consider building a second plant after comprehensively reviewing order conditions. Once the second plant is completed, the Debrecen, Hungary, plant's capacity is expected to more than double from the current level.
Choi Moon-ho, CEO of EcoPro BM, said at the shipment ceremony, "Even amid fierce global market competition, we are expanding supply centered on volumes from premium European OEMs, having earned recognition for top-tier quality and technology," adding, "We are holding additional cooperation talks with major customers targeting the European market, the home of eco-friendly future mobility, and we are also achieving visible order results."
Ha Ju-yong, head of EcoPro BM's Hungary subsidiary, said, "Based on our preemptively established production base in Hungary and a solid raw material supply chain, we will maximize the benefits from Europe's regulatory policies and establish ourselves as a competitive cathode materials company."