DETROIT-General MotorsThe company has chosen South Korea's LG Chem to supply lithium, it said on Monday. Ion batteries for Chevrolet Volt electric vehicles. The batteries will be made in South Korea, but they will be assembled into battery modules and battery packs at a factory in Michigan. GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said,The ion battery pack assembly facility will be the first in the United States. S. It is operated by a major automobile manufacturer. LG Chemical CEO Peter Kim said the company could eventually build batteries in Michigan and expects the company's U. S. Subsidiaries of Compact Power Inc. It will increase its labor force of 100 people in Troy, Michigan. Tony Poswatz, head of the Volt car production line, said GM will also open a new battery lab at its Warren Technology Center. The 31,000-square-The Foot battery lab will be the largest battery lab in the United States. S. , Wagoner said. Wagner said the company is integrating battery research and assembly into its mainstream to develop future power systems. When he announced the news at the North American International Auto Show, he said: "We believe this will become a competitive advantage for GM and is crucial to GM's success . ". Detroit-The GM-based company plans to designate a battery supplier early last year, but decided to continue working with both developers to test their batteries under various conditions. Another company that is applying for a contract is Germany-Based on the Continental Automotive System, the system uses batteries jointly developed by GM and A123 Systems Inc. General Motors chose LG chemistry because of its flat, says Poswatz. Better heat dissipation and battery design for storing more energy than a competitor's cylindershaped cells. Competition from A123 SystemsPoswatz said he is very capable but "must be ahead. Poswatz said that the plant that will assemble the GM battery may be located near the Volt assembly plant across the border between Detroit and Hamtramck. He doesn't know how many workers the battery plant will hire, but he says he expects the battery manufacturing and development business to bring more jobs to MichiganThe dependence on the economy has led to a countryleading 9. Unemployment rate of 6%"We have enough critical mass and future growth will come together," Poswatz said . ". GM also announced on Monday that it has partnered with Ann Arbor's University of Michigan to train battery engineers. Volt is designed to plug into a standard wall socket and can travel 40 miles on battery only. After that, a small internal combustion engine will start to power the car. The car will start selling next year. GM hasn't announced pricing yet, but the initial price is expected to be $30,000 to $40,000.