EcoPro marks 10 years of battery partnership with Sony and Murata

EcoPro will expand its cooperation with Japanese clients, as it celebrates 10 years with Sony and Murata Manufacturing which saved the Korean company from an initial sales slump.

EcoPro founder Lee Dong-chae, fourth from left, takes a photo with Sony executives after the two signed a long-term cathode supply deal in March 2015. [ECOPRO]

EcoPro will expand its cooperation with its Japanese clients, as it celebrates 10 years with Sony and Murata Manufacturing which saved the Korean company from an initial sales slump.

On Wednesday, the Korean battery maker said 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of its partnership with Sony since it signed a supplying contract with the Japanese company's battery business, which was acquired by Murata Manufacturing in 2017.

EcoPro's relationship with Sony started in August 2013 when it became the first Korean company to supply 50,000 tons of nickel cobalt aluminum (NCA) cathode materials to Sony. Cathodes are one of four key materials in making batteries, accounting for 40 percent of the battery cost.

EcoPro's nickel-cobalt-aluminum cathode materials [ECOPRO]

"It was the talk of the town at the time, that a small Korean company became a supplier to a major global battery cell maker," EcoPro said in Wednesday's statement.

EcoPro said its precursor business suffered from low profitability in the mid-2010s despite a massive investment in manufacturing facilities. In 2012, Sony sent its top employees to EcoPro's Ochang plant in North Chungcheong to train the staff there.

EcoPro and Sony signed a long-term contract in 2015. EcoPro has been supplying thousands of cathodes to Murata every year since then.

"By upping our technology to satisfy Sony and its strict quality standards, EcoPro now plays a key role in Korea's battery ecosystem by gaining many global companies as clients, including Samsung SDI and SK On," EcoPro said.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]