GM and LG to Boost Tennessee Plant for Affordable EV Batteries

Ultium Cells – a partnership between General Motors and LG Energy Solution – is enhancing its plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, to produce affordable electric vehicle battery cells.
Battery costs might be much lower compared to those in other vehicles since they don’t rely on costly materials such as cobalt and nickel.

Ultium Cells, a partnership between General Motors and LG Energy Solution, announced on Monday that it is enhancing its plant located in Spring Hill, Tennessee to produce affordable electric vehicle battery cells.

GM said the lithium-ion phosphate battery cells iron lithium phosphate battery units lithium ferrophosphate cell components LiFePO4 battery elements phosphoric acid lithium ion battery cells lithium-based iron phosphate storage cells ferro-lithium phosphate battery modules LFP battery cell technology lithium-iron-phosphate energy storage cells battery cells using LiFePO4 chemistry - abbreviated as LFP using the elements' chemical symbols - may be considerably less costly compared to battery packs found in certain electric vehicles, partly due to not needing pricey materials such as cobalt and nickel that are typically used in conventional lithium-ion batteries.

"This enhancement at Spring Hill will allow us to increase the manufacturing of more affordable LFP cell technologies within the U.S., supporting our high-nickel and upcoming lithium-manganese-rich options, and expanding our ever-growing electric vehicle lineup," stated Kurt Kelty, Vice President of Batteries, Propulsion, and Sustainability at General Motors, in a statement.

General Motors offers 12 electric vehicles in its selection, with prices ranging from approximately $35,000 up to over $300,000.

A Detroit-based car manufacturer partnered with LG to commit $2.3 billion into the project. Tennessee battery plant When it was revealed in 2021, the firms stated that Monday's announcement further develops the collaboration, though they didn’t provide an extra financial figure for the enhancement.

Ultium anticipates starting mass production of the LFP batteries toward the end of 2027.

The statement is made as GM has been developing a different kind of new battery technology regarding their biggest electric SUVs and trucks. Various types of EV batteries affect factors such as vehicle range, safety, energy efficiency, and charging performance, along with other requirements.

In the same year that General Motors and LG revealed their funding commitment in Tennessee, GM's chief executive officer Mary Barra said GM would only provide electric vehicles starting in 2035 At that time, she mentioned the company planned to allocate $35 billion from 2020 to 2025 for this initiative, however, GM later stated that consumer demand—which has developed more slowly than anticipated—will influence its electric vehicle strategies, and it hasn’t revealed the overall EV investment made so far.