SK Innovation announced that it plans for additional investment in its U.S. battery business, following approval by the SK Innovation Board of Directors to fund the start of construction of a second electric vehicle battery plant in Georgia.

SK Innovation plans to invest a total of $2.5 billion in its U.S. battery business to build two plants at its site in Commerce, Ga., with a combined annual capacity of 21.5 GWh. SK Innovation initially announced a $1.67 billion investment at the Georgia site, but the board's decision expands the company's U.S. investment plans to help meet anticipated consumers' demand for EVs in the U.S.

SK Innovation broke ground on the first plant at the Georgia site in March 2019 and is expected to begin mass production in 2022. Construction on the second plant is expected to begin in July at the same site with mass production to start in 2023. SK Innovation has said it could invest as much as $5 billion in its U.S. battery business and create as many as 6,000 jobs.

"While the global community faces challenging times, SK Innovation believes it is important to continue making strategic investments to drive economic growth and meaningful change," said SK Innovation CEO Jun Kim. "With this investment, SK Innovation's battery business will significantly contribute to not only the local Georgia economy but the development of the U.S. EV industry value chain and ecosystem."

When both plants are complete in 2023, the Georgia site will join facilities in Europe and Asia to give SK Innovation a projected annual global capacity of 71 GWh, making it one of the leading makers of EV batteries in the world.