The top row
Last week, Volkswagen-owned Audi said it was considering setting up a U.S. factory, following in the footsteps of other makers of cars, batteries, solar panels and computer chips, taking advantage of incentives provided by the Energy Reduction Act. (IRA), the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill to boost manufacturing and create more than 65,000 jobs.
President Biden was on hand to highlight an American technology company that would benefit from the passage … (+)
Basic elements
Ford announced on February 13 that it will invest $3.5 billion to build a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery plant in Michigan, expecting to employ 2,500 people once production for LFP batteries begins in 2026.
In January, Hanwha Qcells, a Korean solar panel maker, announced plans to spend $2.5 billion to build a manufacturing plant in Georgia, to produce components for its solar panels, the desire to operate the plant in the first quarter of 2023 and provide 2,500 clean energy jobs by 2024.
Battery maker Redwood Materials — started by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel — unveiled plans in December to spend $3.5 billion to build a 600-acre facility to make vital materials for EV batteries in Charleston of South Carolina, bringing 1,500 jobs. recently received a $2 billion loan from the Department of Energy.
Taiwan’s largest semiconductor chipmaker TSMC has started construction of a chip factory in Phoenix, Arizona, after investing $40 billion in two plants in the US, securing at least 4,500 jobs at its own facilities.
Micron, an American chipmaker, plans to invest billions in New York to build a facility by 2030, promising to bring nearly 50,000 jobs to the state, including 9,000 jobs at Micron.
Last January, General Motors said it would invest $7 billion in Michigan to build a battery plant and reinvest in existing auto plants to begin producing EVs by 2024, hoping to create 4,000 new jobs while retaining 1,000 existing ones. .
Big number
Industrial equipment has seen investment rise from $247 billion in 2020 to $319.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022, while manufacturing rose from $71.5 billion in 2020 to $105.9 billion at the end of 2022; according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Key background
Manufacturers are counting on incentives the Biden administration was able to attach to various bills it passed last year. The CHIPS Act provided $52.7 billion in subsidies for US semiconductor companies for research and development, manufacturing and workforce development. The IRA provides a $7,500 tax credit to consumers who purchase an electric vehicle and has production tax credits for clean energy such as solar, wind and electric batteries.
Crucial passage
“There is growth and expansion and certainly there should be an expectation that that will pick up over the next couple of years as incentives kick in as we go from announcing plans to steel in the ground and new production equipment under the roof,” he said. Brad Setser, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations; The Washington Post.
Further readings
Ford to build $3.5 billion lithium iron phosphate battery plant in Michigan using CATL technology (Forbes)
Redwood wins $2 billion federal loan to scale up production of battery materials for electric cars (Forbes)
The cost of battery production tax credits provided to the IRA (Forbes)
(tagsTo Translate)IRA