Redwood Materials releases image of its $3.5 billion electric vehicle battery recycling factory to be built next year outside of Charleston in South Carolina. Image courtesy of Redwood Materials
Dec. 14 (UPI) — A car battery recycling startup is jump-starting plans for a $3.5 billion factory in South Carolina in what’s being called the largest economic development project in the state.
Nevada-based Redwood Materials announced Wednesday it will start work on its second factory, outside of Charleston, in early 2023 with the goal of recycling batteries by the end of next year.
The factory will recycle used lithium-ion batteries to manufacture enough anode and cathode battery parts each year in the United States to power more than a million electric vehicles.
“Currently, anode and cathode components are not produced in North America, and battery cell manufacturers have to source them via a 50,000+ mile global supply chain,” the company said in a statement. “As a result, U.S. battery manufacturers will spend more than $150B overseas on these components by 2030.”
The new development by Redwood Materials, which is run by former Tesla chief technology officer J.B. Straubel, is expected to bring 1,500 jobs to South Carolina.
“We’re ready to support this region and U.S. electrification by driving down battery costs, emissions and reducing reliance on foreign supply chains,” Straubel said in a statement.
“Redwood Materials’ record-breaking announcement shows that our state’s strategic plan to remain a top destination for automobile manufacturers and their suppliers as the industry innovates is working,” said South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster.
Redwood Materials’ $3.5 billion investment tops BMW’s $1.7 billion proposed investment in South Carolina, which was announced in October.
The new 600-acre campus will sit in a stretch of battery manufacturers called America’s “battery belt,” which runs from Michigan to Georgia.
“Localizing the production of critical battery components and ensuring these materials are recycled is the only way to drive down costs, emissions and geopolitical risks while meeting U.S. battery and electrification demand,” Redwood Materials said in a statement.
The company said the new plant, like its Nevada operations in Carson City, will be 100% electric and will not use any fossil fuels, adding “we will not even pull a gas line to the site.”