The Department of Energy has approved a new loan of $7.54 billion for an electric vehicle battery factory project in Indiana, funded by a joint venture between Stellantis and Samsung SDI. The StarPlus Energy LLC project is expected to create 3,200 jobs and 2,800 operations jobs at the plants, as well as hundreds more at a nearby supplier park.
The loan, provided through the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) program, will be used to build two EV battery plants in Kokomo, Indiana. The project aims to produce about 67 GWh of batteries annually, enough to supply approximately 670,000 vehicles.
This conditional loan commitment comes as Stellantis faces corporate upheaval, with its CEO announcing a step down amid declining sales. The company’s struggles to keep pace with competitors in the shift to electric- and software-defined vehicles are also raising concerns about its ability to meet the program’s demands.
The project’s success is crucial, given that President Joe Biden’s administration has promised to reverse or cancel much of the spending on EVs if a Republican takes office. The ATVM loan program, which was revived in 2022, played a significant role in helping Tesla survive in 2009, but its future is now uncertain under potential Republican leadership.
Source: https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/3/24312175/stellantis-samsung-doe-atvm-ev-battery-loan