American Battery Factory, a Utah-based manufacturer of lithium-ion phosphate (LFP) battery cells, will build its first gigafactory in Tucson, Arizona, with 2 million square feet of production space.
The company’s landmark site will involve a $1.2 billion capital investment, start with 300 first phase employees and scale up to 1,000 cumulative jobs over time, bringing $3.1 billion in economic impact to the state.
“Arizona is proud to be home to ABF’s first U.S. facility and headquarters,” said Governor Doug Ducey. “This transformational investment proves once again that Arizona is the premier destination for emerging technologies. The state-of-the-art factory will produce battery cells critical to our energy future right here in Tucson.”
The gigafactory will be installed on 267 acres in Pima County’s Aerospace Research Campus, not far from a Raytheon missile facility. ABF’s headquarters will be the hub of energy storage R&D. The company plans to have the headquarters, R&D center and initial factory module built by late 2024.
Image: American Battery Factory
“American Battery Factory joins prominent regional and corporate headquarters in Southern Arizona, such as Raytheon, Caterpillar and Hexagon’s Mining division, among others,” said Joe Snell, president & CEO of Sun Corridor. “This marquee project catapults Tucson into the national spotlight, ensuring this region has a prominent place in the energy storage and EV manufacturing supply chain.”
Several clean energy companies have found a home in Arizona, including First Solar, TPI Composites, KORE Power and ElectraMeccanica.
ABF’s project partners include the Arizona Commerce Authority, Sun Corridor, Pima County, the City of Tucson, Pima Community College and Tucson Electric Power.
ABF has secured strategic partnerships for the installation of its gigafactory, including with Celgard and its parent company, Asahi Kasei. The company plans to work with Honeywell to provide automation, cybersecurity and optimization products and services.
In November, ABF signed a strategic alliance with Anovion under which Anovion will become a supplier of synthetic graphite anode material into ABF’s lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery cell. The alliance also includes joint investment opportunities in emerging technologies to improve lithium battery performance and supply chain.
In October, ABF received $57.7 million in DOE funding to build and operate a 5,000 metric tons per year lithium hydroxide cathode material production facility near sedimentary mining resources in Tonopah, Nevada. The cathode facility will have the ability to expand over time to produce 30,000 MT/y of the LiH material as demand for EV batteries ramps up.
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