The company that will operate the advanced battery plant slated for Buckeye has received a conditional commitment to an $850 million federal loan to build the facility.
The U.S. Department of Energy financing will support KORE Power’s 1.33 million square foot facility to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles and trucks, as well as energy storage systems for a variety of commercial users, from other manufacturers to electric utilities. to finance the construction. Besides heavy construction equipment, the battery can also power a variety of vehicles, from railroad locomotives to motorboats.
Located near State Route 85 and Baseline Road, the factory will employ 1,250 people at full capacity, with 700 construction-related jobs planned. Production is expected to start in late next year or early 2025, with the capacity to produce battery cells with an energy storage capacity of 6 gigawatt hours per year. That’s enough to power 28,000 electric vehicles and replace 11.8 million gallons of gasoline. In the future, production may increase to 12 GWh.
A conditional commitment from the ministry’s Loan Programs Department means that KORE must secure the necessary permits, raise capital and meet a variety of other requirements. The loan interest rate reflects the prevailing yield on government bonds, depending on the term of the loan, but this is not disclosed.
The project was announced in October 2021.
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Stick to domestic production
A bipartisan infrastructure law, enacted at the end of 2021, has expanded financing authorizations for the manufacture of advanced technology vehicles in the country.
“Domestic support for battery manufacturing is crucial to reducing America’s dependence on other countries, such as China, which currently dominates the industry and supplies many US companies with the materials to resell foreign-made batteries. said the Lending Programs Authority. said in a statement.
The battery uses nickel-manganese-cobalt and lithium-ion iron phosphate technology.
“We are building a facility where American workers will manufacture the battery cells that will power the energy and mobility of the future,” said Lindsey Gorilla, founder and CEO of KORE, based in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. We are focusing on the construction of “Domestic manufacturing will bring the benefits of clean energy investments to U.S. workers across the supply chain.”
Opportunity for Underprivileged Communities
Under the direction of the Biden administration, loans from the Loan Programs Office are aimed to include disadvantaged communities, such as Native American tribes and areas with a high percentage of low-income households and relatively few college graduates. Buckeye is classified as a disadvantaged community. The White House goal is to direct 40% of all profits from certain federal investments, including loans of this type, to disadvantaged communities.
Arizona Senators Kirsten Cinema and Mark Kelly both welcomed the loan announcement.
Cinema, co-author and chief negotiator of the Infrastructure Act that expanded this type of funding, said the project would “create strong careers for ordinary people in Arizona and help the nation by reducing its dependence on foreign countries.” “It will enhance our security and strengthen America’s energy independence and leadership.” statement.
In a statement, Kelly said supporting KORE Power’s Buckeye plant “will bring manufacturing back to the United States as a vital supply chain, while creating high-paying jobs.” Along with creating more jobs, the project will “strengthen national security by reducing dependence on foreign sources of battery components.”
Please contact the author at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com.
