--- title: "Korea" canonical: "https://anchor.is/the-hysteresis/issue/12/korea" publication: "The Hysteresis" publisher: "The Hysteresis" language: "en-US" guide: "https://anchor.is/the-hysteresis/llms.txt" permalink: "https://anchor.is/the-hysteresis/issue/12/korea" issue: 12 section: "korea" description: "LG, Samsung, SK — beyond the headlines" authors: ["Elise Huan-Cartwright"] published: 2026-08-31 updated: 2026-08-29 articles: 14 --- # The Hysteresis > The Hysteresis exists to give a small cross-functional team — strategy, investment, and procurement — a shared weekly instrument for reading the battery supply chain earlier than consensus. Success means the team consistently identifies inflection points in cell pricing, supplier health, and policy enforcement weeks or months before they surface in earnings calls, annual surveys, or trade press. The commercial mechanism is internal-first: the publication proves itself as a decision tool inside the organization, then extends to paid subscribers and a practitioner community as upside. Revenue follows utility — if the team makes better-timed procurement calls and competitive assessments because of what they read here, the publication earned its place. [Read on the website]() ## Issue 12 — Korea LG, Samsung, SK — beyond the headlines ### Q2 Maker Snapshot All three Korean battery makers swung to Q2 operating profit after Q1 losses, but the quality of disclosure varies enough to change what each result actually tells you. LG disclosed its ex-incentive result explicitly: a KRW 127.7 billion loss. Samsung SDI reported KRW 203.8 billion operating profit including KRW 107.7 billion AMPC, but the residual contains an unquantified tariff refund — the feature below decomposes what can and cannot be verified. SK On posted the largest swing and quantified none of its drivers. The sidebar reframes utilization comparability across all three. Beyond earnings: Korean EV share fell to 27.6% in the non-China market, ESS production lines opened across North America with no yield data attached, and OEM partners exited battery JVs. - **LG Posts Q2 Profit, Ex-Incentive Loss Persists** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: LG Energy Q2 operating profit of KRW 113.4B on KRW 7.56T revenue, swinging from Q1's KRW 207.7B loss. LG disclosed KRW 241.1B in 45X incentives and stated the ex-incentive result was a KRW 127.7B loss. No ASP, GWh shipment, or ESS/EV segment split provided. - **Samsung SDI Returns to Profit After Seven Quarters** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: Samsung SDI Q2 operating profit of KRW 203.8B on KRW 3.77T revenue, first positive quarter since Q3 2024. KRW 107.7B AMPC disclosed at consolidated level. The KRW 96.1B residual still contains an unquantified tariff refund; whether the battery business is profitable on a standalone basis cannot be confirmed from public filings. - **SK On Posts Biggest Swing, Quantifies Nothing** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: SK On Q2 battery-segment operating profit of KRW 821.8B, up from Q1's KRW 349.2B loss. SK attributed the swing to higher Asian sales, one-off customer compensation, and increased AMPC but broke out none of the three. No ex-incentive result is calculable from disclosed data. - **Korean EV Share Falls From 37.2% to 27.6%** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: Market Share SNE Research H1 2026: combined Korean installations in the non-China EV market declined 6.3% YoY to 74.3 GWh while the total market grew 26.3%. Samsung SDI's 29% YoY decline was steepest. LG grew 1.5% but lost share as the market outpaced it. - **Five ESS Lines Started, Zero Yields Disclosed** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: ESS Production L-H Battery (Ohio), Ultium Spring Hill, LG Lansing, StarPlus (Kokomo), and SK On (Georgia) have each crossed production-start or quality-validation gates since July. None has disclosed chemistry-specific yield, recurring accepted GWh output, or a publicly verifiable MACR package. - **OEMs Exit JVs, Cell Makers Take Full Ownership** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Tag: JV Consolidation LG acquired Stellantis's 49% stake in NextStar (Windsor, 49.5 GWh). Samsung acquired GM's 49.99% in New Carlisle (27 GWh planned). Both cite ESS flexibility as motivation. Full ownership removes co-producer vetoes but concentrates asset, demand, and financing risk on the cell maker's balance sheet. ### Samsung SDI Decomposition - [Samsung SDI Q2 2026 — Profitable Again, but the Battery-Segment Bridge Stays Blank]() — By [Elise Huan-Cartwright]() · Published 2026-08-28 · Format: The Earnings Decomposition Samsung SDI's battery segment posted KRW 159.3B operating profit in Q2, ending seven straight quarters of losses. The trailing sequence — KRW -630B, -339B, -177B, +159B — is moving in one direction with widening steps. The 45X decomposition still cannot be completed: Samsung books the credit as AMPC and discloses it only at consolidated level (KRW 107.7B), with no segment allocation, and an unquantified tariff refund also supported the quarter. Mechanical consolidated ex-AMPC profit is positive for the first time, though management's "slightly positive" description of the organic result is doing work a number should have done. Samsung is building a differentiated ESS position on a financial foundation public disclosure cannot independently assess. ### Utilization Comparability Reference - [Korean utilization rates share a label but not a methodology]() — By [Elise Huan-Cartwright]() · Published 2026-08-28 LG Energy Solution reported H1 2026 utilization of [52.8%](https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20260813004800320). Samsung SDI reported [73%](https://en.edaily.co.kr/news/eda202608145759/). SK On filed [36.4%](https://dart.fss.or.kr/report/viewer.do?rcpNo=20260814002500&dcmNo=11533558&eleId=12&offset=254234&length=176545&dtd=dart4.xsd). These cannot be ranked; they measure different quantities against different denominators. ### Samsung and Maker Sources - **Samsung SDI Q2: Reported Profit Returns, but Management Won't Size the Tariff Refund That Got It There** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Ex-AMPC, ex-tariff result was "modest profit" per management. 45X decomposition blocked by non-disclosure. - **StarPlus LFP Calendar Goes Public: October Cells, Year-End SBB 2.0, Dedicated Tesla 300Ah Line by Q2 2027** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Three-stage ramp compresses a typical 3–5 year LFP learning curve into 18 months. Track yields. - **Samsung SDI Acquires Full Ownership of New Carlisle, Pivots 27 GWh to ESS — No Revised SOP or Offtake Disclosed** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 GM exits SynergyCells JV. Samsung takes sole control but publishes no timeline or customer commitments. - **Samsung SDI Sells Display Stake for $3.2B to Fund North American Buildout Without Dilution or New Debt** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Balance-sheet unlock; market expects proceeds directed to New Carlisle and StarPlus LFP conversion. - **H1 2026 ESS Shipments Reach 461 GWh Globally — Korean Makers Gain North American Share, Samsung SDI Ships 1.6 GWh to Data Centers** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 LGES at 13.6% NA ESS share. Samsung SDI's data-center volume small but positions prismatic format. - **Samsung SDI Confirms US LFP Mass-Production Validation Underway, October SOP Holds** — [Source]() — Published 2026-08-28 Q2 call reaffirms timeline. SBB 2.0 deliveries before year-end. Yield data still undisclosed. ## Other sections in Issue 12 - [Signal]() - [China]() - [The Log]() - [Defense]() - [Qualification]() ## More - [Publication guide]() - [Issue archive]()