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US Department of Energy Allocates USD 3.5 Billion for Battery Manufacturing Boost

The funding, sourced from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law signed two years ago, will be channelled through the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC).

November 17, 2023. By News Bureau

In a strategic move to boost the nation's battery manufacturing capabilities, the US Department of Energy (DOE) has allocated up to USD 3.5 billion. This announcement comes after European gigafactory company Freyr decided to focus its scaling efforts exclusively in the United States.

The funding, sourced from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law signed two years ago, will be channelled through the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC). It represents the second phase of a comprehensive USD 6 billion package and aims to support new, retrofitted, and expanded domestic facilities catering to battery-grade processed critical minerals, battery precursor materials, battery components, and cell and pack manufacturing.

Concept papers for this funding opportunity are required by January 9, 2024, with full applications due by March 19, 2024.

The initiative aligns with the Biden-Harris Administration's goals of achieving a net-zero economy by 2050 and ensuring that electric vehicles (EVs) constitute half of all new light-duty vehicles by 2030.

Recognizing the pivotal role of batteries in the EV and renewable energy sectors, the DOE emphasizes the importance of making the US competitive in grid-scale energy storage and energy resilience. "With the demand for EVs and stationary storage alone projected to increase the size of the lithium battery market by five- to ten-fold by the end of the decade, it is essential that the United States invests in the capacity to accelerate the development of a resilient supply chain for high-capacity batteries, including non-lithium batteries," states the DOE's announcement.

This funding opportunity complements the existing incentives for clean energy technologies provided by the Inflation Reduction Act, enacted a year after the Infrastructure Law.

Notably, the Act includes a direct payment of USD 35/kWh of batteries produced in the US, contributing to a notable uptick in investments in the country's battery supply chain over the past year.

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Standards & Certifications

US Department of Energy

Battery Manufacturing