Like Panasonic, another tech giant is stepping up its manufacture of batteries for electric vehicles

Samsung SDI will build a new factory in Malaysia. Total investment amount: 1.7 trillion South Korean won.

Samsung is best known to the general public for its smartphones and televisions, but the Korean company has many subsidiaries operating in various sectors. This is particularly the case of Samsung SDI, one of the largest manufacturers of electric car batteries in the world. While Panasonic was looking for land a few months ago to build a new battery gigafactory, Samsung SDI is putting the equivalent of 1.27 billion euros on the table to build a new factory in Malaysia.

A second plant in Malaysia inaugurated in 2024

This plant will be dedicated to the production of cylindrical batteries for electric vehicles. Last May, Samsung SDI and Stellantis had also validated an investment of 2.5 billion dollars for another factory, located in the United States.

The company already has many production sites in different countries: one in Malaysia, several in South Korea, China, the United States and Hungary. Clients include BMW, Volkswagen and Ford Motor.

Going back to our factory in Malaysia, this second site will be located in the Seremban region. Construction is due to be completed in 2025, but the plant will start mass-producing PRiMX 21700 (21mm x 70mm) cylindrical batteries in 2024.

“Malaysia Vision Valley 2.0”

The company wants to make Malaysia one of the world’s largest battery suppliers. Thus, Yoonho Cho, CEO of SDIEM (Samsung SDI Energy Malaysia), said today’s groundbreaking ceremony was the starting point of a plan to transform SDIEM into a foreground by 2030.

An objective shared by the Prime Minister of the Malaysian state of Negeri Sembilan, for whom ” investments from high-impact industries, such as Samsung SDIEM, are an integral part of our vision for robust economic growth in Malaysia and Negeri Sembilan, which is outlined in our Malaysia Vision Valley 2.0 plan “. He believes that Samsung SDI’s investment in Seremban will help “ create jobs for young people and create more opportunities for local businesses “.

Regardless, Samsung SDI expects 8% annual growth for the global cylindrical battery market; it would thus increase from 10.17 billion cells produced in 2022 to 15.11 billion in 2027. Demand is not limited to electric vehicles but also concerns electric tools and more generally energy storage systems.

Sources: Samsung SDI (1), Samsung SDI (2)