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(photo source: SK innovation Hungarian website) according to foreign media reports, the chief executive of SK innovation, a South Korean enterprise, revealed that the company plans to build its second plant in the United States and is considering expanding an electric vehicle battery plant in Hungary. Kim Jun, chief executive of SK innovation, said he expected more Asian manufacturers to produce batteries in the United States rather than export them to the United States from other countries, in order to avoid tariffs and meet the needs of local automakers for batteries. Sk innovation is also considering the expansion of its second plant in Hungary, which is currently under construction with the aim of increasing the supply of cars. The plant's initial planned capacity is 10 GWH, but it is likely to increase to 16 GWH in the future. Kim revealed that SK innovation is currently negotiating with Volkswagen to turn the plant into a joint venture plant between the two parties. VW, however, simply said it was in talks with multiple partners to discuss further options. In Europe and Asia alone, the company says it needs more than 300 GWH of batteries a year. Sk innovation, which owns the largest refiner in South Korea, has started to enter the field of battery manufacturing for electric vehicles in recent years. Kim introduced the company's latest global expansion plan during ces. This expansion plan will help the company cope with the growth of new orders last year. By the end of 2019, the company's cumulative contract orders had reached 500 GWH, compared with 320 GWH a year ago. But Kim revealed that additional investment means its battery sector may not be able to break even until 2022, a year later than previously expected. Sk innovation is currently building the first U.S. battery plant with a capacity of 9.8 GWH in Georgia to supply batteries to VW's U.S. electric vehicle manufacturing base in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which is expected to start production in early 2022. Sk innovation's second plant in Georgia is likely to have a capacity of 10 GWH, but Kim declined to say which automaker the plant will supply batteries. By the end of 2019, the company's first plant in Changzhou, China, was put into operation with a capacity of 7.5 GWH. By the end of this year, the company's second Chinese plant in Yancheng will be completed with a capacity of 20 GWH. Sk innovations is also considering investing in Huizhou Yiwei lithium energy Co., Ltd., a Chinese battery manufacturer, to turn the company into a joint venture so as to obtain another 8.5 GWH capacity. The new orders and expansion plans come at a time when SK innovation and its rival, LG Chemical, are worried about legal disputes in the US. Another risk for SK innovation is that LG may succeed in blocking its EV Batteries. Sk innovation said it was considering using all means, including a settlement with LG Chemical, to resolve legal disputes and said it would fulfill its contract with car manufacturer customers. "We have made commitments to our customers and we will fulfill them," Kim said Kim expects that in 2025, the sales volume will account for more than 10% of the total global automobile sales, and SK innovation's global production capacity will reach about 100 GWH.