Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- SK Innovation (SKI), a subsidiary of South Korea's third-largest conglomerate SK Group, agreed with PolyPlus Battery, a lithium battery developer based in California, to accelerate the commercialization of lithium metal batteries, which are high in energy density.

Due to their large specific capacity and the lowest reduction potential of metallic lithium, researchers have tried to develop high-energy-density lithium metal batteries. A lithium-ion system is lower in energy density, but it has been used more widely because it is comparatively safe.

SK Innovation said Tuesday that it would invest in the research and development of conductive glass separators, a key technology for stabilizing lithium metal batteries. Under a deal signed in Berkeley, California, the South Korean company said it is considering options for acquiring equity investments and technology licenses.

PolyPlus has invented conductive glass separator for rechargeable lithium metal batteries. Thin continuous monolithic glass sheets, which have sufficient flexibility and conductance, act as a barrier to dendrites and facilitates efficient lithium cycling.

SKI plans to complete research on conductive glass separators by the end of 2021 and apply them to the development of lithium metal batteries. SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won has promised to nurture the group's battery business as a sustainable growth engine.

SKI started building its first overseas plant in Hungary in February last year, followed by the construction of another battery plant in Changzhou in China's southeastern Jiangsu province. SKI's battery plant in the United States will be built in Commerce in Jackson County, Georgia. German auto giant Volkswagen has selected SKI as the fourth strategic supplier of battery cells to cover its demand in North America.