DOE to loan $850 million to KORE Power to strengthen domestic battery manufacturing

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO) has agreed to loan $850 million to KORE Power, Inc. The money will be used for the construction of a battery cell manufacturing facility in Buckeye, Arizona. The KOREPlex facility is designed to strengthen the domestic battery supply chain and produce an estimated 6 GWh of battery cell storage capacity annually. The project will generate 1,250 new jobs for the area, and KORE will work with local colleges and tribes to help find and train workers for the plant. 

The KOREPlex facility will be 1,330,000 square feet and feature two production lines for energy storage systems (ESS) and electric vehicles (EVs). According to the company, the KOREPlex plant will also produce “two battery cell chemistries, including both nickel manganese cobalt chemistry, and lithium-iron phosphate, which does not utilize cobalt and may help reduce reliance on foreign supply chains use of that critical material.”

Investing in American Manufacturing - 2023

This map shows where manufacturers are choosing to invest their resources, whether they are building new production facilities or expanding existing plants.