Jane Motors and Solarlight Jointly Invest to Establish JV
Holds Patent for Dry Full Discharge Technology Solving Environmental Issues
Secures Battery Supply and Sales Network through Existing EV Network
[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] DIC, the largest domestic electric vehicle reducer (transmission) company, is recently entering the rapidly growing used battery business.
On the 4th, DIC announced that it would enter the used battery business by establishing a subsidiary, Ecosell. Ecosell is a joint venture (JV) established with Jane Motors, a 100% subsidiary of DIC, investing 51%, and Solarlight Korea, a specialized used battery company, investing 49%. It plans to focus intensively on secondary battery recycling and remanufacturing business by settling in the Daegu factory where Jane Motors is located.
According to market research firm SNE Research, the global cumulative sales of electric vehicles are expected to reach 116 million units by 2030, and the domestic cumulative electric vehicle supply is expected to increase to 8 million units. Accordingly, the global electric vehicle battery recycling market is also expected to grow to around 3 trillion KRW within the next three years. Considering that the market size was around 400 billion KRW last year, it is said that it will grow nearly eightfold in four years.
As the market is expected to grow rapidly, companies related to used batteries are attracting attention as the biggest beneficiaries of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Europe also passed the European Union (EU) battery regulation in March this year, mandating battery recycling for electric vehicles and others. This is also the reason why the stock prices of Saevitchem and Sungil Hightech, which entered the stock market in the second half of the year, soared.
Although Ecosell is a newly established JV, it can immediately start business by utilizing Solarlight's existing Gyeongju factory. Solarlight is a specialized used battery processing company that holds numerous patents related to dry complete discharge technology, which solves environmental and safety issues arising from the existing wet method. These patents cover methods for dry discharging used batteries to remove battery electrolyte and make them non-flammable, and methods for recovering and generating energy during the pretreatment process for battery reuse and recycling to discharge the battery.
According to DIC, Jane Motors applied this technology to develop and test a multipurpose agricultural and fishery vehicle using remanufactured batteries, achieving excellent performance and a 30% improvement in driving range at low cost. A DIC official evaluated, "We can contribute to the government's eco-friendly policy by utilizing remanufactured batteries."
DIC maintains a long-term relationship with Hyundai Kia Motors, giving it an advantageous position in securing battery supply. It also plans to build a used battery sales network together with Jane Motors to increase sales of recycled cells. Through stable sales network construction and expansion of the used battery business, it is expected to achieve sales of 335.5 billion KRW and an operating profit margin exceeding 30% by processing 50,000 cells annually.
A DIC official said, "Through the dry safety discharge technology owned by Solarlight, safe disassembly and crushing of used batteries are possible," adding, "We will realize high value-added creation through resource recovery by advancing the used battery recycling business after use."
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