SB LiMotive is a 50:50 joint company of Bosch

Robert Bosch GmbH

Robert Bosch GmbH is a multinational engineering and electronics company headquartered in Gerlingen, near Stuttgart, Germany. It is the world's largest supplier of automotive components...

 and Samsung SDI

Samsung

The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...

 founded in June 2008. The joint venture develops and manufactures lithium-ion batteries for use in hybrid

Hybrid vehicle

A hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that uses two or more distinct power sources to move the vehicle. The term most commonly refers to hybrid electric vehicles , which combine an internal combustion engine and one or more electric motors.-Power:...

-, plug-in hybrid vehicles and electric vehicle

Electric vehicle

An electric vehicle , also referred to as an electric drive vehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion...

s.

Milestones

In September 2008, SB LiMotive Co. Ltd. started its operations in Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

. About one month later, the German subsidiary SB LiMotive Germany GmbH was founded. In July 2009, SB LiMotive acquired US-American battery manufacturer Cobasys LLC. The groundbreaking of the cell manufacturing plant in Ulsan, Korea was two months later. In November 2010, the plant’s inauguration took place.

Locations

Headquarters and cell development are located in Giheung, (Gyeonggi-do

Gyeonggi-do

Gyeonggi-do is the most populous province in South Korea. The provincial capital is located at Suwon. Seoul—South Korea's largest city and national capital—is located in the heart of the province, but has been separately administered as a provincial-level special city since 1946...

 province, Korea). At the second Korean site in Ulsan, the cell manufacturing plant was constructed in just 9 months. Lithium-ion cells for pre-series projects are being manufactured there since 2010 and series production will start in 2011. In Stuttgart

Stuttgart

Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....

-Feuerbach, Germany, battery systems are developed and prototypes built. At its location in Germany, SB LiMotive has also built up a global team for sales, marketing, and management of key accounts. In 2009, SB LiMotive acquired the U.S. company Cobasys with its two sites in Orion Township, Michigan

Orion Township, Michigan

Orion Charter Township is a charter township of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 35,394 at the 2010 census. The official motto of the township and village is "Where living is a vacation". Orion Township contains the much smaller village of Lake Orion...

, and Springboro, Ohio

Springboro, Ohio

Springboro is an affluent suburb of Cincinnati and Dayton located in Warren and Montgomery counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is in Warren County's Clearcreek and Franklin Townships and Montgomery County's Miami Township...

. Nickel-metal hydride batteries are being manufactured there and the location is now also used to support customers with the engineering of lithium-ion battery packs. At all locations, SB LiMotive employs worldwide some 700 associates in total (as of end of 2010).

Portfolio

SB LiMotive provides lithium-ion energy storage solutions from single cells to complete battery systems. They can be used in all vehicles from micro-hybrid to full electric vehicles. Additionally, the joint venture supports its customers with engineering services for software, battery management services and cooling systems.

Ownership Structure

SB LiMotive is a 50:50 joint venture between Samsung SDI and Robert Bosch GmbH. Mr. Jingun Lee is President of SB LiMotive and Dr. Joachim Fetzer is Executive Vice President.

Customers

SB LiMotive will supply lithium-ion battery cells to BMW for its electric vehicles, which are part of the “Megacity Vehicle“ project. The German automaker will install the battery cells into the EVs, which will go into series production in 2013.

Secondly, SB LiMotive will supply complete lithium-ion battery systems for the Fiat 500 EV. The battery system will be developed in Orion, Michigan, the production of cells will be in Ulsan, and the assembly of the battery pack will be in Springboro, Ohio /USA. Chrysler intends to bring the Fiat 500EV to the US market from 2012 on. The drive train consists of a high power electric powertrain module, advanced lithium-ion battery and an EV control
unit to manage power flows. Vehicle and powertrain will be developed at Chrysler headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan.