The Dow Chemical Co. and Townsend Kokam LLC recently announced their proposed joint venture, Dow Kokam, has been awarded a $161 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop a new generation of high-power battery technology to supply the automotive industry.
Dow and Townsend Kokam will use the federal funding to establish manufacturing operations, including construction of a new 800,000-square-foot facility in Midland, Mich., to produce affordable advanced superior lithium polymer battery (SLPB) technology for the hybrid and electric vehicle markets. Construction is expected to begin by late-October 2009 and battery production is slated to begin in early 2011. The facility will employ up to 800 people.
The DOE program is part of the Obama administration’s goal of putting 1 million new plug-in hybrid vehicles in service by 2015.
“I applaud President Obama and the DOE for helping ensure the next generation of advanced battery technology is developed and built right here in America,” says Andrew N. Liveris, Dow Chairman and CEO. “This is the type of comprehensive, collaborative approach that is needed to give the U.S. a sustained leadership position in this leading-edge industry. Dow is excited to begin using our expertise in chemistry to help overcome the technical challenges of developing and commercializing the next generation of advanced automotive batteries.”
When complete, the Dow Kokam joint venture’s Midland facility is expected to produce enough batteries to supply 60,000 hybrid or electric vehicles per year, create new green collar jobs and help meet the nation’s employment, energy and environmental goals, according to Dow.
Earlier this year, Michigan announced the Dow and Townsend Kokam advanced battery initiative would be one of four companies to receive tax incentives to locate battery production facilities in the state.
The DOE grant is subject to final agreement on terms between DOE and Dow Kokam, which is anticipated by early fall.
Dow Chemical Co. is a CP 50 company. To view the Dow Chemical profile, visit: http://www.chemicalprocessing.com/cp50/2008/dow_chemical.html.To view the CP 50 list, visit: http://www.chemicalprocessing.com/cp50.