Australian company to open electric-vehicle battery factory in the US

A $US35 million factory to produce electric-car batteries – located next to a former Ford plant – has been announced by an Australian mining company.

One of Australia’s largest mining companies, Fortescue, is planning to construct a factory to build electric-vehicle batteries in the home of the ‘Big Three’ US car makers, Detroit.

The planned facility is located adjacent to the site of the factory which first produced the Ford Model T in 1904, with Fortescue to invest $US35 million ($AU52.5 million) and create up to 600 jobs, according to its own estimates.

Automotive News reports Fortescue paid $US20.3 million ($AU30.45 million) for the land in October 2023, according to local government land records.

Fortescue said in a media statement: “It is expected to become a major hub for Fortescue’s production of automotive and heavy industry batteries, hydrogen generators, fast chargers, and electrolysers.”

Vehicles with batteries produced at the facility are expected to be eligible for government incentives given to electric cars with batteries assembled and using components sourced from North America or a country not considered a “foreign entity of concern” by the US government.

The rules – introduced in 2022 – are designed to combat the dominance of Chinese manufacturing of electric vehicles and components, and provide up to $US7500 if the vehicle is also assembled in an eligible country.

That gives a considerable advantage to producers such as Fortescue when manufacturing parts in North America, where sales of electric cars continue to increase.

More than 1 million new electric vehicles are expected to be sold in the US for the first time in 2023.

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