LG Display's Guangzhou OLED panel plant to start mass production in earnest

Rhea-AI Summary

LG Display has commenced mass production at its Guangzhou OLED panel plant, significantly enhancing its production capacity. The facility is expected to produce 60,000 sheets per month, almost doubling the 70,000 sheets produced monthly at its Paju plant. With this expansion, LG aims to fulfill the growing demand for large-size OLED displays, projecting sales of over 12 million units by 2025. The company faced challenges due to COVID-19 but is optimistic about improving profitability through scale efficiencies.

Positive

• Expansion of production capacity to 130,000 sheets per month from both Guangzhou and Paju plants.
• Expected increase in annual OLED TV panel production to over 10 million based on 55-inch average.
• Projected sales growth of OLED TVs to over 12 million units by 2025.

Negative

• Mass production was delayed due to COVID-19 and demand volatility.
• External factors affected the operation and scheduling of the Guangzhou plant.

SEOUL, South Korea, July 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LG Display, the world's leading innovator of display technologies, held a ceremony today to announce the beginning of mass-production in earnest at its 8.5th generation (2,200mm x 2,500mm) OLED panel production plant in Guangzhou, China.

LG Display is currently producing 70,000 sheets per month at its OLED panel production plant in Paju, Korea, and this production capability will almost double to 130,000 sheets monthly when combined with Guangzhou's capacity to make 60,000 sheets per month.

By starting full-scale mass-production at the Guangzhou OLED panel plant, LG Display now has the two OLED panel production bases in the world including the Paju OLED panel plant. Based on these two production bases, the company is fully prepared to further accelerate the trend of large-size OLED displays.

LG Display plans to supply OLED displays to global customers in a timely manner with full-scale mass-production at its Guangzhou OLED plant, and to actively adopt the latest technology, diversify product categories, and strengthen collaboration with other industries to provide differentiated and premium values unique to OLED.

"Large-size OLED business is the essential growth engine of LG Display for the future," said James Hoyoung Jeong, CEO of LG Display. He added, "As the new Guangzhou OLED panel plant begins mass-production, combined with our Paju OLED plant, we are able to accelerate the growth of the large-size OLED business in terms of both quality and quantity. This will enable more rapid adoption of OLED displays in the market. As the OLED market leader, LG Display will further strengthen its position by making constant efforts to develop differentiated products, thereby widening the technological gap between the company and the other following players in the industry.

In the process of preparing for mass-production at the Guangzhou OLED panel plant, the COVID-19 outbreak affected its operation and there were also external factors such as increased demand volatility. These factors delayed the full-scale mass production schedule and LG Display undertook all possible efforts to solve these issues, including dispatching 900 core engineers by chartered flights to Guangzhou since March of this year.

LG Display's Guangzhou OLED panel plant will focus on manufacturing large-size high-resolution OLED products including 48-inch, 55-inch, 65-inch, and 77-inch panels, as it boasts high efficiency and productivity, which makes it more advantageous for the production of extra-large and high value-added OLED panels. The production capacity will be expanded to 90,000 sheets per month down the road from the current capacity of 60,000 sheets depending on market demand.

LG Display is able to produce over 10 million OLED TV panels annually based on a 55-inch panel by maximizing the production capacity of its Paju and Guangzhou plants. Profitability is expected to improve as the company secures an economy of scale with the production capacity increase.

With a total of 19 TV brands now manufacturing OLED TVs now and the number on a constant increase, LG Display will be able to more promptly respond to this rising demand in the market. According to global market research company Omdia, about 4.4 million OLED TV units will be sold this year, and continual growth will see over 12 million units sold in 2025.

About LG Display

LG Display Co., Ltd. [NYSE: LPL, KRX: 034220] is the world's leading innovator of display technologies, including thin-film transistor liquid crystal and OLED displays. The company manufactures display panels in a broad range of sizes and specifications primarily for use in TVs, notebook computers, desktop monitors, and various other applications, including tablets and mobile devices. LG Display currently operates manufacturing facilities in Korea and China, and back-end assembly facilities in Korea, China, and Vietnam. The company has approximately 60,000 employees operating worldwide. For more news and information about LG Display, please visit www.lgdisplay.com.

Media Contact:
Jean Lee, Senior Manager, Global Communications
Email: jean.lee@lgdisplay.com
Tae-Sun You, Head of Public Relations and Public Affairs
Email: ytsun@lgdisplay.com

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SOURCE LG Display

FAQ

What is LG Display's current production capacity at its Guangzhou plant?

LG Display's Guangzhou plant has a current production capacity of 60,000 sheets per month.

When did LG Display start mass production at its Guangzhou OLED panel plant?

LG Display began mass production at its Guangzhou OLED panel plant on July 23, 2020.

What is LG Display's stock symbol?

LG Display trades under the stock symbol LPL.

What are the expected OLED TV sales figures for LG Display by 2025?

LG Display anticipates selling over 12 million OLED TV units by 2025.

What challenges did LG Display face during the setup of the Guangzhou plant?

LG Display faced delays in mass production due to COVID-19 and increased demand volatility.