Battery recycling startup to build second factory in South Carolina – The Hill

Story at a glance

• Battery recycling startup Redwood Materials Inc. Plans to open a second factory outside of Charleston, S.C. 

• The company was founded by former Tesla chief technology officer JB Straube.

•  Company officials expect to break ground on the factory in early 2023.  

Battery-recycling startup Redwood Materials Inc. Plans announced Wednesday it plans to build another factory in South Carolina.  

The company, run by former Tesla CTO JB Straube, will build the facility on a 600-acre campus just outside of Charleston in the “battery belt” or a stretch of battery manufacturers from Michigan to Georgia.  

The facility will recycle used lithium-ion batteries and manufacture “components” of cathode and anodes, or positive and negative electrodes needed for electric car batteries.  

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“Localizing the production of critical battery components and ensuring these materials are recycled is the only way to drive down costs, emissions, and geopolitical risks while meeting U.S. battery and electrification demand,” the company said in the statement.  

Most of the resources needed to build advanced batteries for vehicles and other electronics are sourced in Asia.  

Redwood Materials added in the statement that the $3.5 billion factory will employ 1,500 people over the next 10 years and create enough cathode and anode parts a year to power over a million electric vehicles.  

The startup plans to break ground on the factory in Berkeley County in early 2023 with the goal of recycling its first batteries by the end of the year and eventually building out its manufacturing operations.   

Localizing battery production is important for U.S. car manufacturers as companies prepare to comply with new sourcing regulations for electric vehicles passed under the Inflation Reduction Act.  

Under the law, electric car buyers are eligible for a tax credit of up to $7,500.  

Redwood Materials Inc.’s First battery recycling factory is located in Carson City, Nev.