GM cathode battery plant seeks to lower cost of electric car batteries

Robert Besser
06 Dec 2021, 01:57 GMT+10

General Motors has announced that it will construct a new cathode factory in North America for its EV batteries, under a joint venture with South Korea's Posco Chemical
The factory will process cathode active material, which accounts for some 40 percent of the cost of an EV battery cell
Cobalt is a key component found in batteries, but is the most expensive material used and is mined under harsh conditions

DETROIT, Michigan: General Motors has announced that it will construct a new cathode factory in North America for its electric vehicle (EV) batteries, under a joint venture with South Korea's Posco Chemical.

The factory will process cathode active material, which accounts for some 40 percent of the cost of an EV battery cell.

Cobalt is a key component found in batteries, but is the most expensive material used and is mined under harsh conditions

Therefore, GM and other companies, such as Tesla, seek to develop cobalt-free batteries.

"We would like to get out of cobalt altogether and have a zero cobalt situation." said Doug Parks, a GM executive vice president, as quoted by theverge.com.

GM also promised to spend $35 billion on the development and production of 30 new electric vehicle models by 2025, and aims to have greater control of its supply chain, which includes battery manufacturing.

It, therefore, announced it will spend over $4 billion on the construction of two battery factories in North America, in partnership with South Korea's LG Chem.

The new cathode facility will supply battery materials to two factories currently under construction, the Ultium Cells facilities in Lordstown, Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tennessee. GM is also planning to build two more battery cell facilities by 2024.

The majority of EV battery cathodes are made with nickel, cobalt and magnesium. The Ultium batteries will add aluminum, which will reduce cobalt content by 70 percent.

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Philadelphia Herald.

More Information

76 ℉

Fair in Philadelphia

Business

Section

Saudis buy stake in Russian energy companies, spend billions

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: In a Twitter post published this week, Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding said it had invested in Russian ...

Asian stocks rally across the board, Nikkei 225 surges 354 points

SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - Stock markets across the Asia Pacific region rallied on Wednesday.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 surged 353.86 ...

Poor crane, inexperienced operator among causes of tragic deaths by girder fall

DHAKA, Bangladesh A preliminary investigation into the tragic crane accident that killed five people in Uttara on Monday has found ...

Proposed Vietnam bullet train would run north-south 960 miles

HANOI, Vietnam: The Vietnamese government is considering building a high-speed railway, with a possible cost of up to $58.7 billion, ...

U.S. stocks have mixed day, Nasdaq Composite slides 26 points

NEW YORK, New York - Stocks were decidedly mixed in the U.S. on Tuesday as investors struggled to make a ...

Billionaire Indian trader Rakesh Jhunjhunwala dead at 62

DELHI, India: Dubbed the country's Warren Buffett, India's best-known stock investor and self-made billionaire, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, died on August 14 ...

International

Section