NOVONIX has announced a conditional commitment for a $754.8m loan from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to finance a new synthetic graphite manufacturing plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
The loan, offered through the DOE’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Programme, aims to support the construction of the facility, which will produce synthetic graphite for EV batteries.
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The DOE’s conditional commitment for the $754.8m loan is structured in two tranches of up to $692m in principal and up to $62.8m in capitalised interest, based on phased completion of infrastructure and production lines.
The loan will have terms of 15 years and ten years, respectively, and will be secured by a first priority security interest in all assets of the borrower.
The conditional commitment requires NOVONIX to satisfy several conditions including environmental reviews and technical, commercial, legal and financial requirements before the DOE can finalise the loan.
The binding loan agreement is subject to due diligence, board approval and negotiation of binding documents.
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By GlobalDataThe new facility will support the production of lithium-ion batteries for around 325,000 EVs each year.
The plant is anticipated to reach full production capacity by the end of 2028, creating 450 full-time operational jobs and 500 construction jobs.
NOVONIX CEO Chris Burns said: “This announcement is the culmination of years of hard work and is another critical milestone for our anode materials business towards our target production of 150,000tpa [tonnes per annum] in North America.
“This conditional commitment from the government to invest in our new facility continues to underscore the focus on localising critical materials in the battery supply chain, such as graphite. Recent announcements from China to further scrutinise the export of battery-grade graphite to the US highlight the importance of domestic production of high-performance, battery-grade synthetic graphite.
“Our offtake agreements with strong partners have strengthened our leadership in onshoring the synthetic graphite supply chain in North America and supporting the path towards US energy independence.”
NOVONIX has signed binding offtake agreements with Panasonic Energy, Stellantis and PowerCo to supply synthetic graphite.
The company plans to expand production capacity to 75,000tpa, contingent upon customer demand and additional financing.
The proposed loan will support the first phase of the facility, with an initial production capacity of 31,500tpa.
The company’s Riverside facility in Chattanooga is set to become the first large-scale site for high-performance synthetic graphite production in North America, with commercial production beginning in 2025.
NOVONIX has been awarded a $100m grant and a $103m investment tax credit by the DOE for the Riverside facility.
