21700 applied to Lucid Air by 2023
Reduced number of batteries and increased safety

LG Chem will exclusively supply cylindrical batteries for the Lucid Air, an electric vehicle model to be produced by Lucid Motors of the United States from the second half of 2020 to 2023.

The Lucid Air can accelerate from a standstill to 100 km/h in just 2.5 seconds and has a driving range of 643 km on a single charge.

Supply of next-generation cylindrical battery 21700 model
The battery that LG Chem supplies to Lucid Motors is the 21700 product, which is called a next-generation cylindrical battery.

With a diameter of 21mm and a height of 70mm, the capacity has been improved by 50% compared to the existing cylindrical 18650 battery (diameter 18mm, height 65mm).

Lucid Motors' electric vehicles utilize a system equipped with thousands of small cylindrical batteries, so reducing the number of batteries makes management easier and increases safety. With the commercialization of 21700 batteries, it has become possible to create batteries of the desired capacity by connecting fewer batteries than the existing 18650.

LG Chem established the first mass production system for cylindrical batteries in Korea in 1998, and in 2001, it launched the world's first high-capacity 2,200mAh battery for laptops.

Kim Jong-hyun, Head of LG Chem’s Battery Business Division, said, “With the supply of cylindrical batteries to Lucid Motors, we will be able to strengthen our electric vehicle battery business portfolio alongside our existing pouch batteries,” adding, “We will actively target the rapidly growing electric vehicle cylindrical battery market to secure the global No. 1 position in the electric vehicle battery sector.”


Strengthening the EV battery portfolio
LG Chem is actively targeting the cylindrical battery market for electric vehicles, in addition to its existing pouch-type batteries.

Having recognized the potential of the electric vehicle market equipped with cylindrical batteries early on, LG Chem has been at the forefront of developing high-performance cylindrical batteries, including supplying NCM811 cylindrical batteries to electric buses in 2018. The cylindrical batteries being supplied to Lucid Motors also utilize NCM811 technology.

NCM811 is a product composed of 80% nickel, 10% cobalt, and 10% manganese as the cathode material, which is a key raw material for batteries. While increasing the nickel content in the cathode material can maximize the battery's energy density, it requires advanced technology because the nickel component itself generates high heat, which can lead to safety issues such as overheating.

In the existing large pouch battery sector, 13 of the top 20 global automakers, including Volkswagen, Renault, Volvo, GM, and Hyundai, have supplied batteries. LG Chem has already secured a large order backlog of 150 trillion won, including the recent announcement of the establishment of a large-scale electric vehicle battery joint venture with GM.

In addition, by successively signing large-scale supply contracts in the cylindrical battery EV sector, which has been led by companies like Lucid Motors, LG Chem is being recognized for establishing a comprehensive supply system across all EV battery fields, regardless of battery type.

According to market research firm SNE Research, the cylindrical electric vehicle battery market is projected to grow at an average annual rate of 25%, from 76.4 GWh in 2020 to 150 GWh in 2023 and 227.9 GWh in 2025.