Employees walk past a building of Samsung Electronics in Seoul, South Korea, November 8, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

Samsung Electronics likely to procure phone batteries from LG Chem: Chosun Ilbo

[December 19, 2016]  SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is in talks with LG Chem Ltd to make it one of its smartphone battery suppliers, the Chosun Ilbo newspaper said on Monday - a move that would diversify its supplier base after the failure of its Galaxy Note 7.

Samsung Electronics, the world's top smartphone maker, currently procures Note batteries from group firm Samsung SDI and China's Amperex Technology.

Chosun Ilbo quoted an industry official as saying that there was more than a 90 percent chance of a deal being struck and said that Samsung Electronics would likely begin procuring LG Chem batteries from the second half of next year.

A Samsung Electronics spokeswoman did not have immediate comment on the report, while an LG Chem spokesman declined to comment.

Samsung Electronics announced the recall of 2.5 million fire-prone Note 7s in early September, a fault that was attributed to a defect in Samsung SDI battery. In October, it pulled the plug on the $882 device after replacement phones using batteries from China's Amperex Technology also caught fire.

LG Chem currently makes phone batteries for its affiliate LG Electronics and U.S. company Apple Inc, analysts said.

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

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