South Korea to Invest 15 Trillion Won in Batteries Through 2020

South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, said on Monday that the country's public and private investments for rechargeable battery were estimated at a combined 15 trillion won ($12.53 billion) through 2020.

The country's top chemical maker LG Chem and Samsung SDI have already established a strong presence in global rechargeable battery markets especially for hybrid and electric vehicles. South Korea's No.1 crude oil refiner SK Energy joined the industry later.

South Korea aims to rank as the world's top producer in rechargeable batteries, the government said in a statement. It was not clear the breakdown of the public and private investment.

South Korea forecast the global rechargeable battery market would reach $77.9 billion in 2020, compared with $12.3 billion this year, thanks to rising demand for electric vehicles and energy storage on top of existing demand for mobile carriers including phones and laptops, the statement added.

SK Group, whose major businesses are in refining and telecommunications via SK Energy and SK Telecom, said earlier this month that it would invest 17.5 trillion won by 2020 to develop energy resources including rechargeable battery, and technologies.

LG Chem said in April that it was named the lithium ion battery pack supplier for Volvo's electric hybrid car program, while teaming up with Hyundai Motor, General Motors of the U.S. and China's Changan New Energy Automobile on auto batteries.