Umicore to build battery materials production plant in Ontario

Circular materials technology company Umicore has announced plans to build a manufacturing facility for cathode active battery materials (CAM) and their precursor materials (pCAM) in eastern Ontario.

In a July 13 news release, Umicore officials said the investment “represents the final step” in establishing a global production presence with battery material value chains that are regionally fully integrated to support the transformation towards electric mobility.

The near-carbon-neutral facility in Loyalist Township, Ont., will manufacture CAM and pCAM, which are critical components in the production of EV batteries. Spanning about 350 acres, construction is targeted to begin in 2023 with operations planned for the end of 2025. “[This] location, in the centre of Canada’s automotive eco-system, offers critical advantages such as access to a highly skilled workforce, key infrastructure and renewable energy, which the new plant will be running on 100 per cent from start of production,” the release said.

“Today is another perfect example that our plan to rebuild Ontario’s auto industry is gaining speed and will deliver huge wins for communities,” said Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario. “Ontario has everything it needs, up and down our homegrown supply chain, to remain and strengthen its position as a North American auto manufacturing powerhouse. Umicore plans to bring this part of the EV supply chain to Ontario which will continue to transform our auto sector and create good jobs.”

The $1.5 billion investment supports Ontario’s vision of building an end-to-end EV supply chain in the province. Building the facility will provide employment for around 1,000 people in the construction phase and employment for several hundred in operations.

“Canada and Ontario have all it takes for Umicore to establish a full-fledged, sustainable supply chain for battery materials, all the way from the mine right to the end-market of electric vehicles,” said Umicore CEO Mathias Miedreich. “Once the key customer contracts are in place, this expansion in North America would complete our global rollout of regional supply chains for our automotive and battery cell customers to now three continents.”

The company sees a potential to reach annual production capacity capable of powering approximately one million EVs by the end of the decade.