On the 13th of last month, at the SpaceX launch site ‘Starbase’ on Boca Chica Beach in southern Texas, USA, the large spacecraft Starship, owned by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, was successfully launched. Seven minutes after the launch, the first-stage rocket booster, Super Heavy, returned to Earth from space and landed, caught by the launch tower’s ‘chopstick arms.’ AFP=Yonhap News
LG Energy Solution is set to supply batteries for the spacecraft of Elon Musk’s space exploration company SpaceX. This move highlights the global recognition of LG Energy Solution’s battery performance, as they will be supplying products adhering to the highest quality standards in spacecraft.
According to the battery industry on the 10th, LG Energy Solution has recently been requested by SpaceX to supply power supply batteries for spacecraft. Currently, they are providing the 2170 cylindrical battery cells (21mm diameter by 70mm height), and there is potential for developing customized products in the future.
The batteries supplied by LG Energy Solution are expected to be used in the next-generation space shuttle ‘Starship’ (Starship), which SpaceX plans to launch as early as next year. This large spacecraft was developed with the aim of exploring the Moon and Mars. Last month, the spacecraft successfully completed its fifth Earth orbit test flight. It is also set to be used for the third stage mission of NASA’s ‘Artemis’ project, which aims to send humans to the Moon for the first time in half a century.
Industry observers believe that LG Energy Solution secured the spacecraft battery supply contract for SpaceX by building trust from supplying batteries to Tesla’s electric cars. LG Energy Solution is expected to supply the 4680 batteries (46mm diameter by 80mm length) to Tesla.
Despite a temporary stagnation in the electric vehicle market (a phenomenon known as a ‘chasm’), LG Energy Solution is continuingly securing trillion-won scale battery orders. On the 8th of this month, it was reported that the company signed a contract worth over 8 trillion won with Rivian, an American electric vehicle company referred to as the ‘second Tesla,’ to supply next-generation cylindrical batteries. Last month, they also announced they would supply 46mm diameter batteries to German automaker Mercedes-Benz.