이 기사는 2021년 04월 13일 07시58분 thebell에 표출된 기사입니다

SK Innovation has agreed to pay 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion), one trillion won in cash compensation and one trillion won in royalties, to LG Energy Solution to end their two-year-long legal dispute over electric vehicle (EV) battery technologies.

The amount is not small given SK Innovation’s poor financial performance last year, but the amount itself has been significantly reduced than expected and SK Innovation will likely pay the 2 trillion won in installments, having only a limited impact on its financial soundness.

The two EV battery players have disclosed the total amount only, without details on payment method or timing. “It is difficult to disclose other than the total amount is 2 trillion won,” officials at the two companies said.

It is expected that LG Energy Solution didn’t make excessive demands as the two sides focused on fair competition and co-prosperity through the latest settlement.

SK Innovation’s debt ratio and net debt ratio on a consolidated basis stood at 149% and 63.7% in 2020, up 31.9 percentage points and 21.3 percentage points respectively year-on-year. Its net debt amounted to 9.84 trillion won in 2020.

SK Innovation had cash and cash equivalents of 4.91 trillion won in 2020, but it doesn’t seem sufficient given its total debt stood at nearly 15 trillion won. Also, the company recorded operating loss last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic and tumbling oil prices. Its operating loss on a consolidated basis amounted to 2.57 trillion won. The company also needs around 4 trillion won a year to expand its production facilities to meet growing EV battery demands.

“It is said that they have agreed for SK Innovation to pay the amount over the two years,” said an industry source, adding, “Considering the settlement money once soared to 6 trillion to 9 trillion won, it would be the best results for SK Innovation.”

SK Innovation will secure 2~3 trillion won in the first half of this year – more than 1 trillion won through an initial public offering of its subsidiary SK IE Technology in May and 1.2 trillion won by offloading its assets including Peruvian gas fields. (Reporting by Eun-a Cho)