A consortium led by Ford, including South Korea’s EcoPro BM and SK Innovation, has announced its intention to establish a CAD 1.2 billion cathode manufacturing facility in Canada. The plant will be located in Becancour, Quebec, Canada. The project is being built on 280,000-meter square land. The facility, which will comprise a six-floor building, will commence operations in the first half of 2026. The plant will be able to generate a maximum of 45,000 tonnes of cathode active materials annually, supporting the generation of up to 225,000 EVs per year.
EcoPro will be responsible for manufacturing high-quality nickel, cobalt, manganese and cathode active materials necessary for rechargeable batteries. The project will receive C$322 million each from the federal government of Canada and the provincial government of Quebec in the form of a conditional loan and a partially forgivable loan, respectively.
In May 2023, Ford secured contracts with the lithium producers Nemaska Lithium, Albemarle, Sociedad Qumica y Minera de Chile, and Compass Minerals for the supply of lithium products. In accordance with the contract, Ford will get lithium products for the following 11 years from Canadian company Nemaska Lithium.
REGlobal’s Views: With the increase in EV penetration across the North American region, the demand for lithium-ion batteries, and thus, related materials is going to increase significantly. Recently, a lithium hydroxide production facility was also announced by Avalon and Metso, and now this large cathode plant is coming up. More such facilities will come up as ensuring sustainable supply chains gains importance.
