LG Energy Solution's Holland, Michigan, plant will soon be making close to three times more batteries for energy storage than it does for electric vehicles. It's part of a production shift powered by a $1.4 billion investment, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The stored cleaner solar and wind power can be used to charge EVs in remote locations and for much-needed grid support, per the Free Press.
"We have a solution: We can provide energy storage in any location where the energy is being used," LG North American President Bob Lee said in the story. The growth has given the location enough production ability to power 165,000 EVs a year.
The news comes amid changing government policy that's creating uncertainty in the sector. President Donald Trump's recently passed spending bill eliminates tax incentives for clean energy projects as part of a plan friendlier to dirty fuels, NPR reported.
LG's effort started before the incentives were in place under the previous administration. Company leaders added to it when the perks were passed in 2022.
And while the latest bill guts EV and solar incentives, battery storage credits remain. Now, LG must figure out how its project fits into the new policy's provisions. LG has been making EV batteries in Holland since 2012, according to Columbia Business School and Free Press reporting.
The expansion is also an effort to secure a domestic manufacturing base for a unique pack chemistry. LG now has the first American plant producing promising lithium-iron phosphate, or LFP, batteries, per the Free Press and Canary Media.
"It's a testament and demonstration of the industry's commitment to onshoring manufacturing and ramping it up in short order," Noah Roberts, vice president for energy storage at the American Clean Power Association, told Canary.
The report added that the U.S. has had to rely on China for LFPs, though Samsung and other well-known companies are developing the tech as well. LFPs are billed as being safer, cheaper, and more durable to heat and high voltage. Slower cold-weather charging, shorter range, and lower storage capacity per pound have been hurdles, Recurrent reported.
But breakthroughs are improving the tech. LG is cutting production costs by going with LFPs, which should translate into less expensive EVs. The battery accounts for more than a third of the cost, per the Free Press.
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Sign me up 👍 LG, based in South Korea, is also planning some new batteries using other chemistry types as part of ongoing innovation, the report continued.
Battery storage is crucial to the shift to cleaner, renewable energy. Tesla Megapacks are already deployed around the world, providing grid-boosting power. A group of eight automakers has joined forces on a plan to bring 30,000 EV fast-charging stations to America within five years.
The investments are key to providing cleaner energy and transportation, which reduces heat-trapping air pollution generated by burning nonrenewable sources. Each EV that replaces a gas car prevents thousands of pounds of planet-warming tailpipe fumes each year. The exhaust includes carcinogens and increases other health risks, according to government-cited studies and data.
EVs bought before Sept. 30 still qualify for up to $7,500 in tax rebates for certain new models. Up to $1,500 in yearly gas and service savings can be heightened by charging the ride with a household solar panel setup. EnergySage is a vetted service that can help you source quotes, lock in incentives while they last, and save thousands on upfront costs.
In Michigan, efforts to move the industry forward continue. The expanded LG site covers the equivalent of 42 football fields, employing 1,700 people at full tilt, per Canary.
"It is very clearly a state-of-the-art facility with the most advanced manufacturing that you can have in the United States," Roberts told the news site.
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