North Dakota company received $114 million to boost US battery manufacturing

ND (Valley News Live) – A new battery component processing and manufacturing facility is coming to Mercer County and will receive $114 million to help North Dakota expand its role as a manufacturing powerhouse.

The Biden administration on Wednesday announced the first round of projects funded by the president’s bipartisan Infrastructure Act to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles.

The 20 companies will receive a total of $2.8 billion to build and expand commercial-scale facilities in 12 states to mine and process lithium, graphite and other battery materials, manufacture components and demonstrate new approaches, including making components from recycled materials.

The federal investment will be matched by recipients to mobilize a total of more than $9 billion to boost U.S. production of clean energy technologies, create well-paying jobs, and support President Biden’s national goals for electric vehicles account for half of all new vehicle sales by 2030.

Talon’s proposed facility will process nickel ore from a proposed development and other discovered deposits within an economic radius for domestic battery manufacturing.

Talon entered into a neutrality and workforce development agreement with the United Steelworkers Union, covering the 150 new jobs created at the new plant in North Dakota and the Tamarack Nickel project in Minnesota.

Talon is finalizing Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) with building trades unions in North Dakota and Minnesota. Talon’s facilities in both states must undergo state and federal environmental review and permitting processes that include government-to-government consultations with sovereign tribal governments.