KORE Power, Inc. has received a conditional commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) for a loan in the principal amount of $850 million under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan Program.
The loan will be used to fund the construction of KORE’s advanced battery cell manufacturing facility in Buckeye, Arizona. The KOREPlex, a 1,330,000-square-foot facility, will house multiple production lines to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles (EV) and energy storage systems in the United States. The KOREPlex will produce cells using two chemistries: nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) and lithium-ion iron phosphate (LFP).
“We are focused on building a facility where American workers will build the battery cells that power our energy and mobility future,” said Lindsay Gorrill, Founder and CEO of KORE. “Domestic manufacturing will unlock the benefits of clean energy investments for U.S. workers across the supply chain.”
KORE serves utility, commercial, industrial, and e-mobility including EV manufacturers and fast-charging infrastructure companies. KORE recently announced offtake for energy storage projects in Arkansas and Illinois.
“This support from the LPO will help KORE expand its U.S. leadership in the rapidly growing energy storage and e-mobility sectors while growing our business, allowing us to power the energy transition with American products,” said KORE’s Chief Financial Officer Alexander Nickolatos. “We thank the LPO team who worked with us throughout this process.”
Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, co-author and lead negotiator of the bipartisan infrastructure law, commended the announcement.
“My bipartisan infrastructure law continues to deliver real, lasting results across our state,” she said. “Today’s announcement creates strong careers for everyday Arizonans, boosts national security by reducing reliance on foreign nations, and strengthens America’s energy independence and leadership.”
Arizona Senator Mark Kelly commented that KORE’s advancement will help grow Arizona’s clean energy sector.
“This is big news for Arizona and the country, supporting KORE Power’s gigafactory in Arizona will bring manufacturing back to America for a critical supply chain, while creating good-paying jobs. The administration is taking advantage of the resources we provided through the Inflation Reduction Act to not just boost jobs in Arizona, but also to strengthen our national security by reducing our dependence on foreign sources of battery components for everything from electric vehicles to energy storage. Thanks to KORE Power and the rest of our emerging battery sector, Arizona will be front and center leading the country in developing and manufacturing the technology that will power our economy into the future.”
The construction of the KOREPlex, which began civil works late last year, is expected to create 700 jobs. The facility itself is expected to create 1,250 direct jobs when operating at capacity.
KORE is working with local colleges and universities in Arizona to establish training initiatives and programs for the KOREPlex workforce that will be needed to create a U.S.-made supply of batteries for EV and stationary energy storage.
With its initial lines fully operational, the KOREPlex will have an annual production capacity of 6 GWh of battery cells for customers in the e-mobility and energy storage space. KORE has the ability to further increase annual domestic production based on demand for lithium-ion batteries. The facility is expected to begin delivering product by the end of 2024 or early 2025.
