Jun 22, 2023 - Economy

Ford wins $9.2B DOE loan to build EV battery factories

Katie Fehrenbacher

Illustration of three batteries increasing in size overlaid with money and surrounded by abstract shapes. — Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios

Auto giant Ford has won a conditional commitment for a $9.2 billion Department of Energy loan to build three factories to make batteries for electric vehicles.

Why it matters: The loan is one of the largest ever to come out of the Department of Energy's loan program's office, a department that previously funded Tesla, and is part of the Biden administration's effort to kickstart an American EV manufacturing wave.

Details: The DOE offered the loan to BlueOval SK LLC, a joint venture between Ford and Korean EV battery maker SK On.

The funds will be used to build three factories (two in Kentucky and one in Tennessee) that will churn out batteries for Ford and Lincoln-branded EVs.
The DOE says the funds will create 5,000 construction jobs, and 7,500 operating jobs.

What we're watching: The massive loan is the latest to come out of the Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office, a department essentially unfrozen by the Biden administration and led by climate tech entrepreneur Jigar Shah.

The Biden administration is using the loan office — in combination with the IRA — to attempt to ignite a domestic manufacturing boom around electric vehicles, EV batteries and a battery supply chain.

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Ford wins $9.2B DOE loan to build EV battery factories

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