LS Cable & System is reviewing the establishment of a rare-earth permanent magnet plant in the United States. Observers expect that diversification of supply chains for key resources in advanced industries, currently dominated by China, will proceed and have a positive impact on strengthening energy security for both Korea and the United States.

LS Cable & System announced on the 15th that it has selected Chesapeake, Virginia, as a candidate site for new investment in the United States, is reviewing the business feasibility, and will begin full-fledged cooperation discussions with the State of Virginia. The leading candidate for the new plant site is an area near the subsea cable manufacturing plant that LS Cable & System is building in Chesapeake, Virginia, at a scale of KRW 1 trillion. The company plans to supply the plant’s products to major finished vehicle manufacturers and automotive electronics companies.

Rare-earth magnets are essential materials across advanced industries, including electric vehicles, wind turbines, robots, fighter jets, and urban air mobility (UAM). China accounts for about 85% of global production, and there are very few producers in the United States, making supply chain diversification an urgent task.

An LS Cable & System official stated, “If the project is realized, it will become a new growth axis by expanding the currently cable-centered business into the field of strategic materials,” adding, “It will serve as an opportunity to strengthen leadership in the global mobility supply chain.”

LS Cable & System is pursuing the establishment of a value chain ranging from the securing of rare-earth oxides to metallization and magnet manufacturing. To this end, through its subsidiary LS Eco Energy, it is pushing forward businesses to secure refined rare-earth oxides in countries such as Vietnam and Australia and to carry out metallization.

LS Cable & System is also reviewing the production of rectangular wire and high-quality copper materials in the United States. The company predicted, “Given that we have been supplying rectangular wire to GM and Hyundai Motor, once we also have permanent magnet production facilities in place, our competitiveness in core mobility materials will be strengthened.”

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