EcoPro from South Korea has completed construction of a production facility for cathode material in Debrecen, Hungary. With the new location, the company aims to comply with stricter EU requirements for the electric vehicle supply chain and strengthen its position in the European market. The plant covers an area of around 4.7 million square feet and houses several of the groupʼs subsidiaries.
Material for 600,000 batteries per year
In addition to EcoPro BM, which produces cathode materials, the facility is home to EcoPro Innovation, which specializes in lithium processing, and EcoPro AP, which focuses on producing industrial gases. The EcoPro BM plant is said to have an annual capacity of 54,000 tons of cathode materials, sufficient for around 600,000 electric vehicle batteries. Additionally, the plant is expected to produce 8,000 tons of lithium hydroxide per year.
Step by step towards mass production
Mass production is scheduled to begin gradually starting in 2026. Initially, the plant will produce high-nickel ternary cathode materials, such as nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) and nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM). Later, the product portfolio will expand to include medium-nickel variants and lithium iron phosphate (LFP). In the future, production capacity is expected to double to 108,000 tons per year.
Lower costs due to automation technology
According to EcoPro, the materials manufactured in Debrecen will use low-cost nickel from the companyʼs smelting plant in Indonesia. The company expects to benefit from lower production costs thanks to automation and modern manufacturing technologies. Hungary is considered a central location for the European battery value chain. Cell manufacturers such as Samsung SDI, SK On, and CATL as well as car manufacturers such as BMW have established themselves there.
