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Redwood Materials breaks ground on $3.5B battery recycling plant

January 23, 2024

Redwood Materials, a battery recycling company, broke ground on its $3.5 billion site in Berkeley County (Redwood Materials is founded by ex-Tesla executive J.B. Straubel).

The company aims to start reclaiming materials needed for electric vehicles (EVs) by the end of the year. The Carson City, Nevada-based company plans to hire 1,500 workers at its Ridgeville campus to extract minerals from old batteries that are no longer useful in various consumer products.

These minerals, including lithium, cobalt, and nickel, are primarily sourced from China. Redwood Materials aims to reduce U.S. dependence on China for these key EV production materials through its new factory in Lowcountry and a sister site in Nevada.

The company’s plant in Santee Cooper’s Camp Hall Commerce Park is reported to be the largest industrial investment in South Carolina. The site will also produce anode copper foil and cathode materials, the two main components in a battery cell. The first phase of construction will include a warehouse, offices, and lab space.

Founded in 2017, Redwood Materials plans to produce enough anode and cathode materials at its Nevada and Palmetto State locations to power up to 1 million vehicles annually by 2025 and 5 million per year by 2030. The company has partnered with major automotive and battery industry players, including Ford Motor Co., Toyota, and Panasonic. It has also received funding from investment groups such as Goldman Sachs and T. Rowe Price. The company’s latest financing round in August valued it at $5 billion, and it has a $2 billion loan commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy.