Officials from EcoPro and the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency pose for photos during the celebratory ceremony held for the company's construction of its cathode material plant in Debrecen, Hungary, on Nov. 28. [ECOPRO]

Officials from EcoPro and the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency pose for photos during the celebratory ceremony held for the company’s construction of its cathode material plant in Debrecen, Hungary, on Nov. 28. [ECOPRO]

 
EcoPro has completed the construction of a cathode material plant in Debrecen, Hungary, in a bid to actively target the European market amid the continent’s tightening rules on core materials in the electric vehicle supply chain.
 
The Debrecen facility, which spans about 440,000 square meters (4.7 million square feet), houses multiple group affiliates: EcoPro BM for cathode material production, EcoPro Innovation for lithium processing and EcoPro AP for industrial oxygen and nitrogen production. The plant has an annual production capacity of 54,000 tons of cathode materials — enough to supply batteries for approximately 600,000 EVs. It will also produce 8,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year and 16,000 cubic meters (565,034 cubic feet) of oxygen per hour.
 
 
A ceremony was held at the plant on Friday, attended by company founder Lee Dong-chae, EcoPro CEO Song Ho-jun, EcoPro BM CEO Choi Moon-ho and other executives from the group’s affiliates. Key Hungarian figures including Istvan Joo, head of the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency, as well as executives from major clients such as GEM Vice Chairman Wang Min and SK On CEO Lee Seok-hee also took part.
 
“Thanks to the Hungarian government’s comprehensive and rapid one-stop support, we completed the first European production base by a Korean cathode material company just three years after construction began in 2023,” said Lee. “This marks a new beginning for EcoPro and Europe to shape the future together at a time when the EV industry is rapidly changing.”
 
Starting next year, the company plans to sequentially begin mass production of high-nickel ternary cathode materials such as nickel cobalt aluminum and nickel cobalt manganese, and expand its portfolio to include mid-nickel and lithium iron phosphate products to meet customer demand. Future expansion plans aim to double the plant’s total cathode material output to 108,000 tons annually.
 
Hungary is already home to battery cell makers such as Samsung SDI, SK On and CATL, along with global automakers including BMW. The cathode materials produced in Debrecen will use low-cost nickel sourced from EcoPro’s smelter investment in Indonesia, and the company says automation and advanced manufacturing technologies will enhance its price competitiveness.

BY YOON SO-YEON [[email protected]]