Samsung SDI has said it will invest Won2.7tn ($2bn) to build a second electric vehicle (EV) battery plant in the US through its joint venture with automaker Stellantis, confirming an earlier memorandum of understanding announced in July 2023.

South Korea’s third largest EV battery maker said in a regulatory filing on September 27 that it plans to break ground on the facility in April 2024, but has not decided on a location yet. 

Samsung SDI and Stellantis are aiming to start production in 2027, targeting an initial annual production capacity of 34 gigawatt hours (GWh). The joint venture partners are currently building their first $2.5bn US battery plant in Kokomo, Indiana.

“This new facility will contribute to reaching our aggressive target to offer at least 25 new battery electric vehicles for the North American market by the end of the decade,” Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said in a statement in July. 

The automotive giant, formed by the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA Group, plans to have EVs make up 50% of all the passenger car and light-duty truck sales in the US by 2030.

Since the US passed the Inflation Reduction Act into law in August 2022, multinational auto and battery makers have rushed to set up facilities to make use of billions of dollars in incentives.

Since the legislation, the US has attracted almost $30bn worth of FDI in the EV supply chain, according to fDi Markets. This is three times larger than the announced FDI in other competing countries including Hungary ($10.7bn), Mexico ($10.5bn) and the UK ($9.7bn).

Samsung SDI has also partnered with US automaker General Motors, with whom it is investing more than $3bn to build a battery plant with a target annual capacity of 30 GWh.