Samsung SDI Co., a South Korean battery maker, said Wednesday it has signed a formal deal with global automaker General Motors Co. to jointly build electric vehicle (EV) batteries in the U.S. state of Indiana.

Under the deal, the two companies will invest a combined US$3.5 billion to build the plant, with an initial annual production capacity of 36 gigawatt-hours, Samsung SDI said in a statement.

The Indiana plant aims to begin production in 2027.

“We have decided to establish a premium battery production base to spearhead the U.S. EV market based on our strong partnership with GM, the No. 1 automaker in North America,” Samsung SDI CEO Choi Yoon-ho said in the statement.

Source: Yonhap News Agency