The Energy Department will loan $2.5 billion to a joint venture between General Motors and the South Korean battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution to construct battery cell plants for electric vehicles in three states.
Washington, D.C. The Energy Department will loan $2.5 billion to a joint venture between General Motors and the South Korean battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution to construct battery cell plants for electric vehicles in three states.
According to the Energy Department, Ultium Cells LLC, a partnership between GM and LG, has received a conditional commitment from the department to provide the money. Ultrium may be able to use the loan to finance three lithium-ion battery facilities that are slated to be built in Tennessee, Ohio, and Michigan, supporting the Biden administration’s initiatives to encourage electric vehicles and lessen reliance on China for key components.
According to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, the facilities would contribute to a greater degree of American energy independence and will assist achieve Vice President Joe Biden’s objective of having half of all new vehicles sold in the country by 2030 be electric.
GM will receive supplies from Ultium Cells as it aims to make its light-duty fleet all-electricfulfill by 2035.
When the plants are finished, it is anticipated that they will provide up to 6,000 construction employment and 5,100 operational jobs. In Lordstown, Ohio, Ultium Cells will soon open its first EV battery manufacturing, which the company claims will enable them to fulfill the high demand for electric vehicles.
In addition, the joint venture intends to construct battery factories in Spring Hill, Tennessee, and Lansing, Michigan. According to CEO Mary Barra on Tuesday, GM intends to reveal the location of a fourth factory this year.
Ultrium
The loan will “help build a domestic supply chain to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles,” according to Jigar Shah, director of Energy’s Loan Programs Office. It will also “create thousands of good-paying jobs across three states while enabling improvements in existing lithium-ion battery technologies,” he added.
The estimated $2 billion allocated by Ultium Cells for the building of each plant does not, however, prevent GM and LG from requesting a loan through a program intended to foster renewable energy technology, according to a GM spokesman.
According to spokesman Jim Cain, “if the loan is accepted, it would have the effect of reducing the amount of money the joint venture partners would need to fund directly.” With the money made from the sale of its cells to GM, Ultium Cells will pay back the loans.
Among the automakers that got ATVM loans under the Obama administration were Tesla, Ford, and Nissan.
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