WOODINVILLE, Wash. and MOSES LAKE, Wash., April 4, 2023 — Group14 Technologies today announced the commencement of construction of a second commercial-scale U.S. Battery Active Materials (BAM-2) factory in Moses Lake, WA, in support of domestic efforts to advance the electric vehicle (EV) market. The one-million-square-foot campus will be home to the world’s largest factory of advanced silicon battery materials for EV programs to meet global decarbonization targets.
Leveraging a $614 million Series C round backed by Porsche AG and Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, and a subsequent $100 million grant from the Biden-Harris Administration and the U.S. Department of Energy, Group14’s second BAM factory at 13400 East Wheeler Road in Moses Lake, WA, will join its first factory in Woodinville, WA, in manufacturing commercial quantities of SCC55™, an advanced silicon battery technology that delivers higher energy density and charge rates than traditional lithium-ion batteries for applications such as EVs.
“Drawing from our team’s experience in manufacturing batteries for supercapacitors since the early 2000s, Group14 has prioritized our capacity to scale not only our technology but our manufacturing capabilities from day one,” said Rick Costantino, co-founder and CTO at Group14 Technologies. “With an eye to the importance of process innovation, we are full-steam ahead on building our second commercial factory in Washington State in order to allow us to move at a pace that can match today’s skyrocketing demands.”
The BAM-2 factory in Moses Lake will begin with two large-scale manufacturing modules, each capable of delivering 2,000 tons per year of SCC55™. The production lines for the two initial modules are expected to come online and begin manufacturing SCC55™ for customers in 2024. Built to run on renewable energy in the form of Washington State’s abundant hydropower, the factory is expected to be part of a larger Group14 campus, comprising at least six modules, as the company looks to continue to expand its footprint in Moses Lake.
Group14 has committed to purchase over $30 million in U.S. steel for the first two BAM-2 modules, buildings and equipment and plans to work with American suppliers to secure necessary components, from asphalt to HVAC systems, to build a more robust domestic energy supply chain. By working closely with American suppliers, Group14’s goal is to ensure greater supply chain security and mitigate potential delivery disruptions.
To support the scale of the factory’s construction and operations, Group14’s project will employ more than 400 employees for the construction alone, partnering on the build with Clayco, Inc., a full-service engineering, design and construction firm with offices across the U.S. Group14 expects to hire an additional 200 employees in Moses Lake across manufacturing, engineering and more to support the factory’s day-to-day operations for the first two modules. As Group14 expands its workforce in Moses Lake, the company is working closely with more than 20 community-based organizations on increased clean energy job creation, hiring, job training and more to foster equal opportunity across the full spectrum of cultures that shape the local community.
“Boosting the nation’s global competitiveness in battery manufacturing comes down to strengthening domestic supply chains, which is why we are ramping up our second U.S. factory at the speed in which we need to see innovation scale,” said Rick Luebbe, CEO and co-founder of Group14 Technologies. “By accelerating the timeline for market-ready, transformational battery technology, we are putting the power to electrify everything into the hands of U.S. workers who will become the backbone of the clean energy economy.”
