Redwood Materials has announced plans to erect a battery materials campus worth $3.5 billion in Ridgefield, South Carolina, as reported by Reuters. The EV battery recycling company will utilize the new facility to recycle sufficient cathode and anode components to supply 1 million electric vehicles per year.
Project objective
Redwood aims to recycle, refine, and remanufacture critical battery minerals like nickel, cobalt, lithium, and copper. The battery components produced in the new facility will secure enough supply for 1 million EV batteries for North America.
Specifically, Redwoods will supply the battery components to Toyota Motor in North Carolina, Volvo, and Envision AESC in South Carolina, Ford Motor, and SK On in Kentucky.
It is worth noting that North America still lacks an anode and cathode production, so it is either imported or recycled.
Nonetheless, numerous companies have been encouraged to enter the anode and cathode production business due to the incentives offered by the newly passed Inflation Reduction Act. It aims to encourage domestic production of electric vehicles and batteries to lessen foreign reliance.
Schedule
Redwood Materials aims to start the operation at the facility by late 2023. By 2025, it will gradually raise production capacity to 100 gigawatt-hours, which will be sufficient to meet its goal of supplying 1 million electric vehicles.
Notably, many companies have set their eyes on US battery belts since the introduction of the IRA. Redwood Materials is now on track to be the biggest battery recycling company with this new project. However, more investments are needed to maximize the campus’ capacity of 400 GWh.
