LG Chem inks deal on energy storage system

LG Chem, South Korea's leading chemical maker, said Monday that it has signed a deal with a Swiss power engineering firm to supply batteries for a smart energy storage system (ESS) to make inroads into the European market. Under the contract with Swiss-based ABB, LG Chem will supply its lithium-ion batteries and batteries management system for ABB's ESS businesses. The ESS is a system that can store energy and discharge it whenever and wherever it needs to maximize energy efficiency. The global ESS battery market is expected to grow an average of 35 percent annually to 12 trillion won (US$10.8 billion) in 2020, according to the company. LG Chem will deliver its first batch of batteries for one of ABB's power stability projects by the end of this year, it said. "We will lead the global ESS battery market, as well as batteries for electric vehicles," said a company official. "We will keep focusing on research and development."