LG Display announces $908 million investment in plastic OLED plant

South Korea’s LG Display Co. has announced investment of 1.05 trillion won ($908 million) a new plant for the production of flexible plastic organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays.

The company, which supplies screens for Apple and its sister company, LG Electronics Inc., intends to increase spending to capitalise on the growing demand for the technology, driven by the smartphone and smartwatch markets.

It also plans to use the investment to develop future applications including foldable screens and large automotive displays.

The plant, which will be fully operational in the first half of 2017, will produce produce 7,500 input sheets per month using a substrate sheet of 1500mm x 1850mm.

The main advantage of a flexible OLED display is the screen’s ability to bend by the use of a plastic substrate instead of a glass substrate as in a conventional OLED display.