Volkswagen Group’s battery cell plant will occupy roughly 25 per cent of a 1,500-acre (600-hectare) website in St. Thomas, Ont., constructing what’s going to develop into Canada’s largest manufacturing facility.
But because the automaker and its in-house battery subsidiary PowerCo prepared their shovels for the $7 billion development challenge, the method of parceling out the remaining 1,130 acres (457-hectares) to potential cell plant suppliers, is simply getting began.
“When you attract an electric vehicle battery manufacturer, you need a lot of component manufacturers,” Vic Fedeli instructed Automotive News Canada April 21, pointing to cathode and anode materials, copper foil, and lithium hydroxide as a number of of the important thing inputs.
Fedeli wouldn’t pin a particular worth to the anticipated spending, however mentioned the cell plant’s provider park will appeal to a number of “billion-dollar-plus facilities.”
Sean Dyke, CEO of the St. Thomas Economic Development Corp., mentioned clearing the way in which for this set of follow-on buyers within the metropolis halfway between Toronto and Windsor “should keep me employed for a few years.”
‘SPACE AVAILABLE’ FOR SUPPLIERS
“I know that [Volkswagen and PowerCo] have some potential suppliers that may or may not locate close to the facility. We want to make sure that we have space available for those.”
The municipality may also be specializing in the peripherals, Dyke added, making certain the roads, railways, and hydro corridors can deal with the surge in exercise.
Housing, each in St. Thomas and the neighbouring communities, is one other native focus.
“Nobody has any issue driving from one community to another in this area of Ontario; there’s no traffic,” Dyke mentioned. “So, we need London to grow. We need Woodstock to grow. We need Chatham to grow. And it’s all going to happen, as long as there’s demand.”
The Ontario and federal governments say the Volkswagen plant will create 3,000 direct jobs, in addition to 30,000 oblique jobs, lots of that are more likely to be concentrated within the provider park across the cell plant.
PowerCo is in discussions with a variety of potential suppliers, in response to firm CEO Frank Blome. Volkswagen’s devoted battery unit, he mentioned, goals to create a neighborhood provide chain for the St. Thomas plant, which is scheduled to provide its first battery cells in 2027.
One potential provider has already dedicated to placing down roots in Ontario, although not in St. Thomas. Battery supplies firm Umicore introduced plans to construct a $1.5 billion cathode lively supplies plant outdoors Kingston, Ont., final July.
UMICORE ON BOARD
PowerCo is already working with Umicore in Europe, and Blome mentioned the Belgian-based firm’s Ontario plant is a “great option” for cathode materials. The two corporations signed a non-binding deal to increase their partnership to North America in December, however haven’t inked a proper settlement.
Suppliers for anode materials, aluminum housing and a number of other different key cell elements may also be required, Blome mentioned.
Further upstream, Canadian mines are anticipated to supply at the least a number of the uncooked battery supplies wanted for the cathodes and anodes in PowerCo’s cells. Volkswagen’s preliminary accord with the Canadian authorities struck final August was a pledge to collaborate on battery mineral provides.
Lithium, cobalt, manganese, nickel and graphite would be the key inputs, at the least initially. Blome mentioned the Ontario plant will probably construct NMC (nickel, manganese, cobalt) lithium ion battery cells, the most typical sort utilized in North American EVs right this moment.
“The demand right now probably drives us in that direction,” however the plant shall be able to producing a variety of battery chemistries on standardized manufacturing traces, he mentioned, permitting the corporate to shift to alternate options akin to LFP (lithium iron phosphate) if purchaser preferences change.
1 MILLION BATTERIES ANNUALLY
The PowerCo plant is anticipated to have six manufacturing blocks, and shall be able to producing as much as 90 GWh of cells, sufficient for a million EV batteries per 12 months. Construction in St. Thomas is scheduled to start out subsequent 12 months.
By that time, a number of extra hyperlinks within the PowerCo provide chain might have been coaxed into place.
Fresh off the official cell plant announcement in St. Thomas, Ontario’s business minister is already planning to get in entrance of a number of of Volkswagen’s potential suppliers. Fedeli mentioned he’ll journey to Germany in mid-May with the objective of mapping out extra of the provider park.
Fedeli’s federal counterpart has no quick plans for the same European go to, however Laurie Bouchard, spokeswoman for the ministry of innovation, science and financial growth, mentioned François-Philippe Champagne is in shut contact with provider prospects abroad.
Source: canada.autonews.com