thebigp

Jun 23, 2023—PRINTED OFF 9/21/23--Ryan Hogg --INSIDER

The US is lending Ford $9.2 billion to build battery plants in Tennessee and Kentucky.
• The sum from the Loan Programs Office is the biggest to an automaker since the 2009 bailouts.
• It's also three times the loan extended to General Motors for battery plants last year.
The US government is lending $9.2 billion to Ford for three battery plants in a sign of the Biden administration's desire for America to become a leading EV player. The Department of Energy's Loan Program Office announced Thursday it was financing the BlueOval SK joint venture involving Ford and South Korean battery manufacturer SK On for one factory in Tennessee and two in Kentucky. The loan for the factories, which are already under construction, is the biggest handed out to a carmaker since the $80 billion bailout loans of 2009, and is the latest step in the US's drive for energy security amid rising tension with China. The Energy Department said the two factories would create 5,000 construction jobs and eventually employ about 7,500 people. It said the factories would produce 120 gigawatt hours of battery capacity annually and displace 455 million gallons of gasoline a year over the lifetime of the vehicles using the batteries. The loan is more than three times the amount handed out last year to General Motors to build three battery factories. It's also 20 times the $465 million loan provided to Tesla by the Obama administration in 2010 to help complete its breakthrough Model S, which paved the way for its EV market leadership. The loan is the latest step by the White House to on-shore production of crucial EV components amid rising geopolitical tensions, particularly with China. Chinese EV capabilities also appear to be overpowering the US. In the final quarter of last year, China accounted for about 87% of lithium-ion battery imports to the US, according to analysis by S&P Global. It's also a sign of rising demand for EVs amid a wave of subsidies brought in by Biden under his Investing in America pledge for EVs to make up half of all new US vehicles sold by 2030. Demand for EVs has caught some manufacturers off-guard. In December, Ford's EV chief Darren Palmer told Insider that demand for the F-150 electric pick-up truck had been so strong that it decided to build a second factory next door.



Biden-Harris Administration Announces $15.5 Billion

BY: Energy.gov—8/31/23===PRINTED OFF 9/21/23

1. Biden-Harris Administration Announces $15.5 Billion to Support a Strong and Just Transition to Electric Vehicles, Retooling Existing Plants, and Rehiring Existing Workers
DOE Funding Will Retrofit Existing Automotive Manufacturing Facilities Across the Country, Expand and Retain High-Paying Auto Manufacturing Jobs, and Bolster Domestic Supply Chains, Part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda to Create Not Just More Jobs But Good Jobs, Including Union Jobs
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $15.5 billion package of funding and loans primarily focused on retooling existing factories for the transition to electric vehicles (EVs)—supporting good jobs and a just transition to EVs. This includes making available $2 billion in grants and up to $10 billion in loans to support automotive manufacturing conversion projects that retain high-quality jobs in communities that currently host these manufacturing facilities. In the Domestic Conversion Grant Program, higher scores will be given to projects that are likely to retain collective bargaining agreements and/or those that have an existing high-quality, high-wage hourly production workforce, such as applicants that currently pay top quartile wages in their industry. The Department also announced a Notice of Intent to make available $3.5 billion in funding to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles and the nation’s grid, as well for battery materials and components currently imported from other countries. The Notice of Intent outlines how DOE will support growing domestic industry while also supporting manufacturing workers and promoting equity and environmental justice. Together, these federal investments underscore President Biden’s deep commitment to helping retain and expand high-paying manufacturing jobs while empowering workers to have a strong voice in and capture the economic benefits of the clean energy transition. The President's Investing in America agenda is also enhancing our national security by building up the domestic supply chains necessary to reach the Administration’s ambitious climate goals.
“President Biden is investing in the workforce and factories that made our country a global manufacturing powerhouse,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Today’s announcements show that President Biden understands that building the cars of the future also necessitates helping the communities challenged by the transition away from the internal combustion engine.”
Depending on their capital needs, manufacturers can apply to receive assistance via financial grants through DOE’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) or preferable debt financing through DOE’s Loan Program Office.
Converting and Retrofitting America’s Manufacturing Plants
DOE today announced a new $2 billion funding opportunity to spur the conversion of long-standing facilities to manufacture electric vehicles and components. Supported by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the Domestic Manufacturing Conversion Grants for electrified vehicles program, will provide cost-shared grants for domestic production of efficient hybrid, plug-in electric hybrid, plug-in electric drive, and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles. This program will expand manufacturing of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty electrified vehicles and components and support commercial facilities including those for vehicle assembly, component assembly, and related vehicle part manufacturing. The program aims to support a just transition for workers and communities in the transition to electrified transportation, with particular attention to communities supporting facilities with longer histories in automotive manufacturing. Preference will also be given to projects that commit to pay high wages for production workers and maintain collective bargaining agreements.
Projects selected for this funding must also contribute to the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in America’s workforce and ensure every community benefits from the transition to a clean energy future. This funding supports goals and targets detailed in the 100-day reviews under Executive Order 14017 “America’s Supply Chains and the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries’ National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries,” which provides a path to building a strong domestic battery supply chain and accelerating the development of a robust, secure, and equitable domestic industrial base by 2030.
Concept papers are due October 2, 2023, and the deadline for full applications is December 7, 2023. Learn more about this funding opportunity.
Leveraging Loan Authority for Automotive Manufacturing Conversion Projects
DOE is also making up to $10 billion in loan authority available for applications under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program for automotive manufacturing conversion projects that retain high-quality jobs in communities that currently host manufacturing facilities. Examples include retaining high wages and benefits, including workplace rights, or commitments such as keeping the existing facility open until a new facility is complete, in the case of facility replacement projects. For projects that seek financing to convert or directly replace an existing factory that has high-quality jobs, DOE will assess the projected economic impacts of the facility conversion relative to the existing facility, including factors such as contribution to the local economy, employment history, anticipated employment, and duration of its existence. Interested applicants can learn more about how to apply for these projects here.
Bolstering American Battery Manufacturing, Strengthening Domestic Supply Chains
DOE also announced today its intent to invest approximately $3.5 billion to boost production of advanced batteries and battery materials that are critical to rapidly growing clean energy industries of the future, including electric vehicles and energy storage. This notice of intent—made possible by the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—represents the second round of funding for battery materials processing and battery manufacturing grants to support the creation of new, retrofitted, and expanded domestic commercial facilities for battery materials, battery components, and cell manufacturing. The Notice of Intent outlines how round II will support growing domestic industry, supporting manufacturing workers, and promote equity and environmental justice. The program will support communities with experienced auto workers and a history of producing vehicles, applicants with strong workforce practices, and applicants who plan to create high-quality jobs.
Today’s announcements were made possible by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which is growing the American economy from the bottom up and middle-out by rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, driving over $500 billion in private sector manufacturing and clean energy investments in the United States, creating good-paying jobs and supporting collective bargaining, and building a clean-energy economy that will combat the climate crisis and make our communities more resilient.
Both the conversion grant funding opportunity and battery manufacturing notice of intent will be administered by MESC. Learn more about MESC’s mission to strengthen and secure manufacturing and energy supply chains needed to modernize the nation’s energy infrastructure and support a clean and equitable energy transition. Conversion Project loans are made available by ATVM, administered by LPO. Learn more about ATVM projects and eligibility requirements.

UAW president slams Biden administration for loan to Ford-SK battery plants
Jordyn Grzelewski--Riley Beggin--The Detroit News-6/23/2023—PRINTED OFF 9/21/2023
United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain on Friday blasted the historic, $9.2 billion Department of Energy loan to Ford Motor Co. and South Korean battery maker SK On Co. as an example of the federal government "actively funding the race to the bottom with billions in public money."
"These companies are extremely profitable and will continue to make money hand over fist whether they're selling combustion engines or EVs. Yet the workers get a smaller and smaller piece of the pie," Fain said in a statement. "Why is Joe Biden's administration facilitating this corporate greed with taxpayer money?"
The strongly-worded statement was the latest example of the UAW's new, more militant leadership being willing to publicly criticize Democratic leadership that historically has had friendly ties with the Detroit union — an unanticipated rebuke of the president's re-election campaign.
In May, Fain said in a letter first reported by The Detroit News that the union would withhold endorsing Biden in the 2024 election until the administration supported a "just transition" to EVs with "top wages" for workers.
More:UAW demands Biden support 'top wages' for EV workers before endorsing
Fain's newest statement came in response to news Thursday that the Department of Energy planned to make the largest single loan in its history to the Ford-SK On joint venture to help finance three electric-vehicle battery plant projects the companies are building in Kentucky and Tennessee. The loan would cover the majority of the $11.4 billion the companies are investing in the projects that also include an EV assembly plant.
“The UAW is working toward the same goal as the President, which is to ensure the future of the auto industry is made here in America, with good-paying, union jobs," Robyn Patterson, a spokesperson for the White House, said in a statement. "America’s auto workers are essential to achieving that goal. The President respects the UAW for working hard for the interests of the working people they represent, and the President will keep working hard toward that goal as well, including blocking attempts by Republicans in Congress to send these historic private sector investments and jobs overseas.”
The loan marks the most significant direct government support for an auto company since the bailouts of General Motors Corp. and Chrysler Corp. during the Great Recession. It is just the latest example of the Biden administration's push to ramp up domestic production of EVs, batteries and other critical components and materials in a bid to compete with China.
Ford and SK On have estimated that the projects will create 11,000 jobs. DOE said Thursday the plants will generate more than 120 gigawatt hours of U.S. battery production annually.
"The goal is twofold: One is to get people to choose the United States over other countries they may have put this infrastructure in originally, and two is to get them to move faster because the terms alone make it possible to take bolder action," Jigar Shah, director of the Loan Programs Office at the Department of Energy, told The News on Thursday. "I think both of those things were true in this case."
The LPO received an additional $40 billion in loan authority from the Inflation Reduction Act; Shah estimated his office has $50 billion in loan authority.
Last year, the LPO gave Ultium Cells LLC — a joint venture between General Motors and LG Energy Solutions — a $2.5 billion loan for their battery production efforts. In 2009, Ford got a $5.9 billion loan through the same program, which it has since repaid.
DOE would not disclose the details of the loan terms, but the agency can offer loans with a repayment timeline of up to 25 years. The interest rate on the loan is equal to the United States Treasury yield curve with zero credit spread — a more affordable rate than the joint venture could have received from private investors.
Feds announce historic $9.2 billion loan for Ford-SK battery joint venture in South
In a statement Thursday, Ford Treasurer Dave Webb said: "Major technology transitions have always been accelerated by collaboration between the public and private sectors. The DOE’s foresight here will help do the same for the transition to zero-emissions transportation."
The Kentucky and Tennessee manufacturing campuses are key pieces of Ford's $50 billion electrification strategy, under which it plans to hit a production rate of 2 million EVs annually by the end of 2026. T

LogicallyRight Loc: Chicago

And where does the biden administration got the money for these loans to private industry. They take out loans themselves putting America and us, further in debt. Let the auto makers got their own loans from banks, etc. and not increase the national debt. They make the profits. They should take the risks. That is how Capitalism works. biden's method is more like national socialism. And isn't that what the Nazis were, national socialists. Just askin'. But stay out of funding industry. That is not the government's job.

American Vet

jimpack123 Loc: wisconsin

wrong the Govt should help, this will provide more jobs in the USA, not some phony promise to build celphones in Wisconsin 3 billion dollars wasted and no jobs created

American Vet

Nope - freedom and prosperity are built on the free market.

F.D.R.

Another waste of taxpayer money. Ford, GM & Chrysler can pool their resources to develop then build batteries that would be standard for all future vehicles.

LogicallyRight Loc: Chicago

***wrong the Govt should help,
>>>The government helps best when they remove unnecessary regulations and those costs and gets out of the way of the entrepreneur and/or business

***this will provide more jobs in the USA,
>>>The government should not be in the business of creating jobs, but instead, what it was created to do, defend Americans and our borders. Something closer to the Constitution.

***not some phony promise to build celphones in Wisconsin 3 billion dollars wasted and no jobs created
>>>Whose $3 billion. The company with the promises? Then that is their tough luck. The Government, like Wisconsin that provided the help I just pointed out we shouldn't be involved in? Then vote those bastards out. Let business take its own evaluated risk and let government take care of real government needs for the people, that the people really want and ask for and agree to pay for.

Logically Right

jimpack123 Loc: wisconsin

YadaYadaYada whine whine whine

Fit2BTied Loc: Texas

Maybe it's just me, but isn't winning the EV race on par with being the top seller of knitted condoms?

American Vet

LOL

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

older and wiser

Ford has already lost over 5 billion on its electric vehicle sales this year! More of bidenomics in action!

older and wiser

Unfortunately the democrats are doing the opposite!

older and wiser

That’s called bidenomics!

DAV

Will the $billions in 'loan' be paid back....hell no !

jimpack123 Loc: wisconsin

yews at a zero interest unlike 45's past loans lol