CATL is the leading supplier of EV batteries in the world
This would be the company’s first plants in North America
The output of these factories will be used by Ford and BMW
Chinese battery giant, CATL, is reviewing sites to build two EV battery making facility in the United States.
CATL has been the largest producer of batteries destined for electric vehicles around the world for the last five years and this move will only strengthen its position.
The company is reportedly almost ready to choose the site of its first two factories in the United States, but few details are known yet.
We known that the batteries produced in these plants will be used to supply Ford and BMW for their domestic production of electric vehicles.
Since these are the two targeted automakers, it is likely that the factories will be installed in South Carolina, where BMW currently manufactures most of its SUVs and in Kentucky or Tennessee, where Ford builds trucks.
Reports show that instead of one very large facility, CATL is looking to build two smaller ones that will be located close to each of its manufacturing partners in order to simplify logistics and reduce transport costs.
For Ford, the most likely candidate seems to be the Blue Oval City factory in Tennessee, where the F-150 Lightning is built, since the automaker has already announced a joint venture with SK Innovations to supply its Kentucky plant with batteries.
This announcement from CATL comes shortly after the Biden administration unveiled its plan to invest $3 billion to promote EV battery making in the United States, which will be granted as tax credits for companies that make these types of products.
