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An idled factory in Tennessee is about to be revived.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, local officials, and NOVONIX — which supplies and tests battery materials — announced June 22 that the company plans to invest $160 million to retrofit a former Alstom power generation plant in Chattanooga that will serve as a new production facility.
The project is expected to create 290 jobs in Hamilton County. Employees will produce more than 8,000 metric tonnes of anode material that is used in long-life lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.
The repurposed factory will support NOVONIX’s PUREgraphite anode materials business, which launched in 2017 to support the demand for lithium-ion battery materials.
Expected to become operational in 2023, it will be the company’s second facility in Chattanooga. According to local media, NOVONIX has had a presence in the city since 2017, with 20 employees located there currently.
The former Alstom factory was closed at the end of 2016 as part of business restructuring under its parent company, General Electric.
“Chattanooga has been a great location for our operations over the past four years, and we look forward to growing the company in the expanding south-east hub of electric vehicle battery manufacturing,” said Chris Burns, chief executive officer of NOVONIX.
Image Credit: Roman Zaiets / Shutterstock.com
