The US Department of Energy announced that Ultium Cells LLC, a joint venture between LG Energy Solution and GM, had closed a $2.5 billion loan for the development of li-ion battery production facilities in Ohio, Tennessee, and Michigan, according to Nashville Business Journal.
As of this month, Ultium Cells LLC’s projected investment in Spring Hill has increased by $275 million to a total of $2.64 billion. With this enormous amount, it ranks third among the biggest economic developments in Tennessee.
Purpose
Ultium Cells aims to build these three battery manufacturing plants as it ramps up to meet the rising electric vehicle demand in the United States.
“This loan will jumpstart the domestic battery cell production needed to reduce our reliance on other countries to meet increased demand and support President Biden’s goals of widespread EV adoption and cutting carbon pollution produced by gas-powered vehicles.”
US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm
Furthermore, it will supply General Motors with a sufficient number of Ultium batteries it needs for its EV offerings. In fact, GM’s Hummer EV is already equipped with Ultium batteries. It will be followed by the Cadillac Lyriq, Silverado, Equinox, and Blazer by 2023.
On the other hand, the project is estimated to generate over 11,000 jobs: 6,000 in development and 5,100 in operations. It also includes the approximately 700 United Auto Workers union jobs at the Ohio manufacturing facility.
Schedule
The Spring Hill plant is expected to produce its first batch of Ultium batteries by the fourth quarter of 2023.
The investment highlights the federal government’s strong commitment to push automakers to produce more electric vehicles. It also backs up GM’s ambition to develop the necessary facilities in North America to produce over 1 million EVs yearly and achieve net zero global operations by 2040.
