Redwood Materials To Supply Cathode Material To Panasonic U.S. Battery Plant

Panasonic Corp will get remanufactured battery cathode product from Redwood Resources, beginning in 2025, for the Japanese battery maker’s new Kansas plant, the businesses explained on Tuesday.

The multi-yr offer, valued at many billion dollars, is the hottest market go aimed at shortening world-wide offer lines and minimizing U.S. manufacturing dependence on China, which mines and refines significantly of the essential supplies that go into electric car or truck batteries, which include nickel, cobalt and lithium.

Individuals targets are a focus of U.S. President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which aims to build up a battery resources source foundation in North The usa.

“The IRA just accelerated this entire transition” of the battery provide chain, Redwood Elements Main Executive J.B. Straubel said in an job interview. He expects the corporation to be the initial to make cathode material at volume in North America.

5-yr-old Redwood Products has a extended partnership with Panasonic, which builds battery cells in Nevada in a joint venture with Tesla. Redwood recycles Panasonic scrap supplies from that manufacturing unit, and has an settlement to source Panasonic at the Nevada plant with remanufactured anode copper foil.

Redwood Components, based in Carson City, Nevada, has held  expanding its small business well further than recycling. The corporation has reported it is shelling out billions of bucks to scale up production of cathode and anode product by 2025 to 100 gigawatt-hours — ample to provide 1 million EVs — then increase that ability fivefold, to 500 GWh by 2030.

The cathode is the most expensive element of a battery cell, representing up to 50% of the expense. By onshoring the provide of critical products, in section by means of recycling and remanufacturing, Redwood and others hope to trim that price above the upcoming few a long time.

Redwood’s associates consist of some of the world’s greatest automakers, notably Toyota Motor Corp, Ford Motor Co and the Volkswagen Team.