Powin selects Jabil to produce BESS in US

Powin said on May 23 it had selected Floridabased Jabil to produce its Stack750E utility-scale energy storage system product in the US.

Starting in the fourth quarter of 2023, Jabil is to produce an initial annual capacity of 2GWh, with plans to ramp up to 4GWh per year.

Powin said it selected Jabil based on factors that included the firm’s environmental health, social equity and sustainable practices.

Stuart Bolland, Powin’s COO, said the deal underlined its commitment to building a domestic energy storage supply chain.

The move will reduce supply chain risk and benefit Powin customers who can take advantage of incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act for buying US-content products, Powin said.

The US Department of Energy has reversed its decision to award Microvast a $200 million grant to build a lithium ion battery separator plant, amid claims the company has links to China.

Republican senator John Barrasso claimed on May 22 the company had “close ties to communist China” and should not receive US government aid or loans.

Barrasso has also introduced draft legislation that would prevent the DOE from making financial awards to firms “beholden to China”.

However, Microvast founder, chairman and CEO Yang Wu said on May 24 neither China’s government or the Chinese communist party had any ownership of the firm or influenced operations in any way.

Wu, an American citizen, said he was surprised at the DOE’s decision to withdraw the grant, “which was designed to help build a new facility in Kentucky that would employ hundreds of people”.

In the meantime Micro-

Brazil takes Li investments drive for backing on NYSE

Brazil has turned to one of the world’s major financial centers to energize investment in the country’s battery materials industry.

Secretary of geology, mining and mineral transformation, Vitor Saback, was at the New York Stock Exchange on May 9 to seek backing for the launch of the lithium valley project in the state of Minas Gerais.

Saback, representing mines and energy minister Alexandre Silveira, said the aim was to garner investment in the Jequitinhonha valley to exploit lithium reserves and become a supplier to the global batteries market, while creating jobs and improving livelihoods of the local population.

The investment drive came four months after newly-elected president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was sworn into office pledging an investor-friendly approach to expanding the energy sector. vast intends to continue to invest significantly in its US expansion, Wu said.

According to Saback, the area around the valley comprises 14 municipalities that have the largest lithium reserves in the country.

Lithium sector players Companhia Brasileira de Lítio, Sigma, Atlas Lithium Corporation, Latin Resources, Deep Rock and Lithium Ionic all have projects in the region at different stages of development, the mines and energy ministry said.

Studies by the Brazilian Geological Survey indicate the existence of 45 “high economic potential” deposits in the area.

“The DOE decision does not alter our plans to commercialize our polyaramid separator. We will continue to invest in a pilot line that will add 10 million m2 of capacity this year.”

Texas-headquartered Microvast was founded in 2006.

Chief financial officer Craig Webster said the firm’s priority was to complete its 4GWh cell and module manufacturing plant in Tennessee — on which work started in 2021 and in which Microvast has invested more than

$300 million.

“Based on our backlog of orders, we expect revenue in the US this year to be in excess of $100 million,” Webster said.

“The DOE decision also has no impact on our liquidity position, and in fact, it gives us more flexibility on how we plan to undertake our expansion initiatives in the US.”

In 2022, Microvast established its new energy storage division in Colorado along with a technology and testing center to support the growth of utilityscale energy storage systems in the US.