[Edaily Reporter JAEMIN SONG ] LG Energy Solution has begun full-scale operations at its Lansing, Michigan, plant, completing the establishment of five major production hubs to target the North American energy storage system (ESS) market.

LG Energy Solution announced on the 18th (local time) that it held a ceremony to mark the opening of its Lansing plant in Michigan. The event was attended by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, and LG Energy Solution President Kim Dong-myung, among others.

The Lansing plant is LG Energy Solution’s seventh production facility in North America. With an annual production capacity of over 35 gigawatt-hours (GWh), it operates as a multi-purpose manufacturing hub producing both lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for energy storage systems (ESS) and nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) batteries for electric vehicles.

LFP batteries for energy storage systems (ESS) are supplied to customers in the power infrastructure and artificial intelligence (AI) data center sectors through Vertec, LG Energy Solution’s ESS system integration (SI) subsidiary. As of the end of last year, the company’s ESS order backlog, primarily in North America, stood at approximately 140 GWh. In the first half of this year, it also secured new contracts worth over 3 trillion won.

NCM batteries for electric vehicles are supplied to Toyota. They are scheduled to be installed in models such as the 2027 Highlander, produced at the Georgetown plant in Kentucky. LG Energy Solution and Toyota signed a battery supply agreement in 2023.

With the launch of the Lansing plant, LG Energy Solution has completed its North American ESS production network, which consists of three standalone production facilities—the Lansing and Holland plants in Michigan and the NextStar Energy plant in Ontario, Canada—as well as two joint-venture facilities: the Honda joint venture plant in Ohio and the General Motors (GM) joint venture plant in Tennessee.

This is the result of a “strategic rebalancing” aimed at expanding the company’s business structure—which has traditionally centered on electric vehicles—to include ESS and new business ventures. The strategy involves converting existing production facilities for ESS use and maximizing the utilization of investment assets to respond to rapidly changing market demand. LG Energy Solution plans to secure ESS LFP battery production capacity of over 50 GWh in North America by the end of this year.

Market research firm Wood Mackenzie forecasts that the U.S. ESS market will grow to approximately four times its current size by 2031, with new installations reaching 499 GWh. Local battery demand is also expected to expand rapidly as investment in AI data centers, renewable energy, and power grids increases.

President Kim Dong-myung stated, “The launch of the Lansing plant is a significant milestone that will accelerate the growth of our North American business,” adding, “We will build a cutting-edge battery manufacturing network to support the future of the U.S. mobility industry and energy infrastructure, and expand our local production capacity.”