StarPlus Energy secures a $7.54 billion conditional loan commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to build two lithium-ion electric vehicle (EV) battery plants in Kokomo, Indiana.
The borrower is a joint venture between FCA US LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Stellantis N.V., and Samsung SDI Co. Ltd., a division of Samsung Electronics. The plants will be used for Stellantis EV models sold in North America, the DOE said.
Capacity
When completed, the StarPlus project will produce about 67 GWh of batteries, or enough to supply about 670,000 EVs a year.
Using these batteries will displace roughly 260.3 million gallons of petroleum per year and greatly expand EV battery capacity throughout North America. The DOE said this is a key to reducing America’s reliance on foreign nations like China for EV batteries.
Onshoring
The project is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda to bring technologies back to the U.S. through onshoring and re-shoring of manufacturing. The project is expected to create 3,200 construction jobs and 2,800 operational jobs at the plants. Hundreds of thousands of additional jobs will also be needed at a nearby supplier park and surrounding areas.
If finalized, the loan would be offered through the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) loan program, that provides loans for technology in vehicles, qualifying components and other materials that improve fuel economy.
