New $237 Million Facility Will Double EnerDel's Lithium-Ion Battery Production

Submitted by eBoom Staff on January 29, 2010

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Lithium-ion battery producer EnerDel (Nasdaq:HEV) has announced it will invest US$237 million to build a new manufacturing plant in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The new facility will nearly double EnerDel's production capacity. The company estimates that when the new facility is complete it will be able to manufacture 600,000 battery packs for hybrid electric vehicles, or 60,000 battery electric cars. Furthermore, it will lead to the creation of 1,400 new jobs. EnerDel's battery business will not be limited to the transportation sector, though. The company will also produce batteries for the electric grid.

The new plant wil be funded through a mix of public and private funds. EnerDel was awarded a US$118.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy as part of a 50:50 Cost Share program.

As Charles Gassenheimer, Chairman and CEO of EnerDel's parent company Ener 1, Inc., highlights, the battery industry is getting ready to explode: "Demand for high-performance lithium-ion battery systems is expanding dramatically, for vehicles of all sizes as well as the utility grid, and we are going to be full prepared to meet it."

Read the full story at Electric Drive Transportation Association: EnerDel Plans to Invest $237 Million in New Indiana LIthium-Ion Battery Plant, Creating 1,400 New Clean Tech Jobs

Image courtesy of Flickr

Tags: advanced battery technology, battery industry, DOE, electric car, electric vehicle, EnerDel, federal funding, Indiana, Indianapolis, lithium-ion battery, manufacturing plant, Nasdaq:HEV, U.S. Department of Energy, United States, Finance

Nathanael Baker is the Managing Editor of EnergyBoom. He has been immersed in the areas of renewable energy and climate change for two years. Before joining EnergyBoom, Nathanael was the Director of Research for the DeSmog Blog. In this role his services included providing research to the New York Times and The Economist.

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