U.S. Energy Department Announces $2.5 Billion Battery Cell Manufacturing Loan for Ultium Cells

The U.S. Energy Department’s Loan Programs Office closed a $2.5 billion loan to Ultium Cells LLC on Dec. 12 for the construction of its lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Michigan, and Tennessee, which will create more than 11,000 high-paying jobs across the three facilities. This will drive the country toward electric vehicles and sustainable technology by reducing carbon emissions from gas-fueled vehicles while addressing climate change. This marks the first loan from the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing, or ATVM, exclusively for battery cell manufacturing.

Ultium Cells LLC, which is a joint venture between LG Energy Solution and General Motors, will manage the battery manufacturing facilities at three locations. The loan program will boost domestic battery production and support the country’s goal to become a global leader in the manufacturing of EVs, accounting for 50 percent of new electric vehicles by 2030, while driving the President’s goals to achieve a net-zero economy by 2050.

Earlier this year, the Loan Programs Office made a conditional commitment to the company Ultium Cells to produce low-cost batteries at a large scale that will offer clean and reliable energy for all vehicles, including personal and commercial vehicles. Ultium Cells aims to abolish 100 percent of tailpipe pollution from the new light-duty vehicles in the country by 2035 and achieve an annual production capacity of more than one million electric vehicles by 2040. The battery manufactured by Ultium Cells uses nickel-cobalt-manganese-aluminum chemistry to produce low-cost cells of different ranges that are flexible in their arrangements and satisfy each category of vehicle, from work trucks to performance vehicles.

The loan from the ATVM program complements the funding from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for EV charging infrastructure. By the end of October, 98 active applicants had applied for projects with a total loan amount of $104 billion.

The loan program office supports the National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries, which aims to achieve a secure battery materials and technology supply chain that will support long-term economic competitiveness in the country while creating good-paying jobs and a carbon-free environment.