DOE Awards 11 U.S. Auto Industry Plants with $1.7 Billion

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently awarded $1.7 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 across 11 auto-manufacturing and assembly facilities from nine companies, to bolster the production and supply chain of electric vehicles (EVs). Industrial Info is tracking progress at all 11 plants, as well as more than $3 billion worth of active and planned projects at these facilities.

Major players set to receive support include General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) (GM) (Detroit, Michigan), Harley-Davidson Incorporated (NYSE:HOG) and Cummins Incorporated (NYSE:CMI) (Columbus, Indiana).

Click on the image at right for a graph detailing the companies receiving funds from the DOE.

"The Domestic Manufacturing Auto Conversion Grants program helps ensure that the U.S. continues to lead the world in auto manufacturing, led by the communities and workers who know this business best," the DOE said in a press release. "The selectees will negotiate for awards to enable them to manufacture vehicles and products covering a broad range of the automotive supply chain, including parts for electric motorcycles and school buses, hybrid powertrains, heavy-duty commercial truck batteries, and electric vehicles."

One of the projects started construction in early 2023 and currently is set to wrap up toward the end of first-quarter 2025: Fiat-Chrysler Automotive US LLC's (Auburn Hills, Michigan) $2.5 billion EV battery plant in Kokomo, Indiana, which is set to receive about $250 million from the DOE. The company, which is a subsidiary of Stellantis NV (NYSE:STLA) (Hoofddorp, Netherlands), expects to produce 23 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of batteries annually at the 20-building complex, for a range of EVs produced at Stellantis' North American assembly plants.

Fiat-Chrysler is weighing the potential for a proposed expansion of the facility, following the completion of its grassroot phase, to raise production to 33 GWh. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Industrial Manufacturing Plant and Project databases can learn more in a detailed plant profile and project reports on the project under construction and its possible expansion.

Fiat-Chrysler also is receiving $334.76 million from the DOE to convert its idled assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, from the production of traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to assembling EVs. Subscribers can learn more about the facility in a detailed plant profile.

Mobis North America LLC, a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company (Seoul, South Korea), is receiving $32.62 million from the DOE for its EV battery-assembly plant in Toledo, Ohio. Developers of the brownfield project started work on $13.8 million in renovations at the existing structure toward the end of 2023 and expect the full project ultimately will involve $65 million of investment. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed plant profile and project report.

The other DOE grants are set for planned expansions at eight existing, operational facilities across the U.S.:

• Blue Bird Body Company's (NYSE:BLBD) (Macon, Georgia) school bus plant in Fort Valley, Georgia, which is receiving $79.73 million; see plant profile
• Cummins' ICE plant in Columbus, Indiana, which is receiving $75 million; see plant profile
• GM's Grand River Assembly Plant in Lansing, Michigan, which is receiving $500 million; see plant profile
• Harley-Davidson's motorcycle parts plant in York, Pennsylvania, which is receiving $89 million; see plant profile
• Volvo Group's (Gothenburg, Sweden) Mack truck-body plant in Macungie, Pennsylvania; New River Valley Assembly Plant in Dublin, Virginia; and Volvo-Mack Powertrain Plant in Hagerstown, Maryland, which together are receiving $208.22 million; see profiles for the Macungie, Dublin and Hagerstown plants
• ZF Friedrichshafen AG's (Friedrichshafen, Germany) axle drive plant in Marysville, Michigan, which is receiving $157.71 million; see plant profile

Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article.

Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for profiles for plants set to receive funds from the DOE's Domestic Manufacturing Auto Conversion Grants program.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).