LG Energy Solution will supply batteries for the largest solar and energy storage system (ESS) project involving Google.
On the 14th (local time), Google and U.S. renewable energy firm "Cypress Creek Energy (CCE)" said they held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Steel River Energy Center, a solar power plant CCE will operate in Mississippi County in northeastern Arkansas.
The two companies plan to build an initial 2 gigawatt-hour (GWh) ESS with the goal of starting operations in 2029, then expand it to 2.9 GWh. The ESS will use LG Energy Solution batteries. LG Energy Solution plans to supply JF2 DC Link, an ESS solution based on lithium iron phosphate (LFP) produced in North America. The order value is said to be in the hundreds of billions of won.
LG Energy Solution produces ESS batteries at four North American production bases: Holland, Michigan; L-H Battery Company in Ohio; Ultium Cells in Tennessee; and NextStar in Canada. LG Energy Solution also plans to begin ESS battery production at its Lansing, Michigan, plant within this year. Through this, the company plans to secure an annual production capacity of 50 GWh of ESS batteries across five North American bases by the end of the year.
Google decided to pursue this project to respond to rising power demand from the expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. Google signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Cypress Creek Energy and plans to use electricity produced at the Steel River Energy Center to operate nearby data centers.