LG may be one of the biggest TV brands in the world, but it’s also a true giant in the home appliance industry. From refrigerators and washing machines to stoves, LG can theoretically cover most of the bases in your home. Did you know that at one point LG could also power a home itself with its line of residential solar panels? Unfortunately, the company’s foray into this industry is a thing of the past as LG stopped manufacturing solar panels in 2022.
Innovations in solar panels that improve their reliability keep coming, but when LG left the market, the company cited uncertainty in the industry. The key factor, according to LG Electronics, was rising material costs and growing price competition. Although the company continued to support its existing customers, it slowly reduced production throughout the second quarter of 2022 for inventory purposes, and as of June 30, former employees received their severance packages.
LG isn’t the only company that stopped producing solar panels in 2022. Panasonic is another giant that threw in the towel around the same time, and more recently, Sharp with its European subsidiary did the same in 2025. Overall, demand for this type of energy (and associated equipment) is growing, but rising costs still may not make panel production extremely profitable. The reasons? Commodities like silver still cost a pretty penny, and shipping prices aren’t slowing down either. It could be argued that not much has changed, meaning LG may have seen the writing on the wall relatively early.
What else did LG give up?
LG doesn’t hesitate to discontinue products. In 2025, the company exited the electric vehicle charging business after just three years. He pulled the plug (pun intended) when demand for electric vehicle charging equipment didn’t skyrocket as expected and price competition got a little out of hand (much the same way it did with solar panels).
A similar situation occurred with existing technologies. Exiting dying markets makes a bit more sense, but consumers were disappointed when LG stopped producing Blu-Ray players in 2024. However, LG remains open to re-entering production if demand returns, so there’s still some hope, at least. While the move away from optics is understandable, LG has stopped producing smartphones, a market that makes the adjective “hot” seem like an understatement.
Well, increasing competition is one of the major factors behind this decision. The market became too competitive and LG was struggling to catch up, so much so that its phones barely made a dent. While Samsung sold 256 million units in 2020, LG only sold 28 million. As a result, LG’s mobile division posted a loss of almost $4.5 billion after about six years. Consider it a justified mercy killing that happened after years of being on life support.
