General Motors, POSCO to Make Battery Materials

General Motors and South Korea’s POSCO Chemical announced on Monday its building a plant to produce battery materials.

This joint venture aims to help the carmaker ramp up its plans to manufacture mainly electric vehicles in the future.

Then, POSCO CEO said that the deal would allow the firm to expand battery material supplying capability across North America.

The new facility will be in Bécancour, Quebec, estimated at $400.00 million. It will produce cathode active material (CAM) for vehicle batteries.

Subsequently, cathodes are the most complex and costly chemical component of an EV battery.

It contains processed nickel, lithium, and other material, representing 40.00% of the cost of a battery cell.

GM Canada’s President said they plan to build a million EVs in North America. The facility’s establishment will begin immediately, having the goal to have it running by 2025.

At the same time, the business mentioned that the factory would create approximately 200 jobs.

Eventually, the CAM produced at the plant will be a material for General Motors’ Ultium batteries. It will power up Chevrolet Silverado, GMC HUMMER, and Cadillac LYRIQ.

Moreover, the company’s factory in  Ingersoll, Ontario, will launch EV production later this year.

The firms previously unveiled plans to form a CAM processing agreement in December 2021, majority-owned by POSCO Chemical.

Furthermore, General Motors has unveiled a series of actions to create a new and more secure EV supply chain.

Last year, the business formed a strategic investment with Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) to secure lithium.

Consequently, it teamed up with General Electric to supply rare earth materials.

Then, GM inked a partnership with MP Materials to establish the first North American processing site for alloy flakes.

General Motors Picks Canada

General Motors also announced to work with the Canadian federal government and Quebec’s provincial government.

Canada is rich in the key materials for EV battery production like lithium, graphite, cobalt, and nickel.

The country has sought the support of battery manufacturers to safeguard the future of its car manufacturing industry.

General Motors’ latest move is the second CAM plant announcement for Becancour in less than a week.

On Friday, chemicals company BASF secured land for a planned battery materials facility in the city.

Canada’s Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne mentioned that Becancour would soon become a hub for the country’s EV battery sector.

Correspondingly, he further added that ongoing discussions are underway about building a battery factory.