SK Factory Construction in Juzia Province Senator: "Impact on Jobs and Electric Vehicle Policy"
Nominee for Deputy Minister of Transportation: "Will Review the Impact"
[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The nominee for the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation has announced plans to analyze the impact of the electric vehicle battery dispute between LG Energy Solution and SK Innovation on the Biden administration's green transportation goals.
Attention is focused on whether the U.S. government will take concrete action after SK requested the White House to exercise President Joe Biden's veto following LG's victory in the battery dispute between the two companies.
According to foreign media on the 3rd (local time), Polly Trottenberg, the nominee for Deputy Secretary of Transportation, stated this during her Senate confirmation hearing. This is interpreted as her intention to examine whether the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC)'s ruling, which declared LG Energy Solution the winner, aligns with the Biden administration's climate change response policies.
Trottenberg's remarks were in response to a question from Senator Raphael Warnock, whose constituency is in Georgia. Senator Warnock urged the administration to respond, noting that 2,600 jobs are at risk in Georgia, where SK is building a factory.
Senator Warnock emphasized, "The ITC's ruling is a serious blow to Georgia workers and the Biden administration's electric vehicle policy."
Warnock is credited as a key figure who helped the Democratic Party become the Senate majority by winning in Georgia, a state that was once a Republican stronghold.
Earlier, LG Energy Solution filed a complaint with the ITC, alleging that SK Innovation poached personnel related to electric vehicle batteries and infringed on trade secrets. The ITC decided to ban imports of SK Innovation's batteries into the U.S. for 10 years.
The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is reviewing reports submitted by both companies regarding the ITC decision. President Biden must decide whether to exercise a veto within 60 days of the ITC ruling. Although it is widely analyzed that the original approval is likely since no U.S. president has ever vetoed an intellectual property infringement issue, the Biden administration's focus on climate change response could lead to a different stance.
President Biden has also signed an executive order to review supply chains for items with unstable supply to the U.S., such as semiconductors, batteries, and rare earth elements.
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