South Korea’s LG Energy Solution is moving its bets from wheels to server rooms. On November 3, Chief Financial Officer Lee Chang-sil laid out a timeline on an earnings call: by the end of this year, its pouch-type energy storage system (ESS) capacity will exceed 50 GWh, and next year it will push that above 70 GWh. In his view, as EV growth slows, the large-scale buildout of AI data centers has opened a new avenue for battery makers—ESS order backlog reached 160 GWh in the third quarter, the company is in talks with power companies and hyperscale data center operators about new projects, and in September it also joined Nvidia’s DSX Ready program as an energy storage supplier.

Betting on Nvidia, wagering on sodium batteries, and seeking to "de-risk" the supply chain

To capture this wave of demand, LG Energy Solution plans to mass-produce lithium iron phosphate (LFP) 2170 cylindrical batteries in the first half of 2027 and accelerate sodium-ion battery R&D: its Ochang plant is to produce ESS samples within the year, and in 2027 it will deliver test units to North American customers. Meanwhile, to align with U.S. restrictions targeting restricted foreign entities, it is diversifying its cathode, anode, and electrolyte suppliers, and has signed long-term agreements with Canadian and U.S. suppliers to secure local lithium supply.

Still, the pains of transition remain visible in its books: third-quarter revenue was 9.6 trillion won (about RMB 47.9 billion), and operating profit was 756 billion won (about RMB 3.775 billion), but after accounting for minority interests, it posted a net loss of 296.9 billion won (about RMB 1.483 billion). Its stock fell for two consecutive days, dropping nearly 5% in a single day.