South Korean cathode materials company EcoPro BM has secured a 5-year, $33.4B (43,867,615,524,480 KRW) contract to supply high-nickel NCA cathode material to Samsung SDI. The contract runs from 1 January 2024 through 31 December 2028.

After the arrival of the contract period, the sales unit price to be applied to the actual transaction will be finalized by applying the price of raw materials (nickel, cobalt, lithium, etc.) at that time, and there will be periodic sales unit price adjustments. Therefore, the final transaction amount to be implemented in the future may be added or deducted from the above contract amount due to future changes in the raw material market price, EcoPro said.

EcoPro currently has two main cathode series: its NCA series, and its next-generation CSG (core-shell gradient) NCM 811.

ECOPRO BM was spun off from its parent company ECOPRO in May 2016 to specialize in cathode materials.

EcoPro plans eventually to ship the battery materials to Samsung from its plant in Debrecen, Hungary, which is currently under construction (ground breaking was in April 2023), with a projected start in 2025. The annual production capacity of the facility is projected to be 108,000 tons. Until commercial operation of that plant begins, EcoPro will supply materials from its complex in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province.

EcoPro expects the construction of the local production plant in Hungary to be a bridgehead to secure orders for the European car market.