Ford plans $890 million EV battery materials plant in Canada

Ford Motor Co. will join rival General Motors in turning to a small city in central Quebec to produce cathode active material for electric vehicle batteries.

The U.S. automaker, along with partners EcoPro BM Co. and SK On Co. announced plans Aug. 17 to build a more than $890 million battery materials plant in Bécancour, midway between Montreal and Quebec City.

Ford’s first-ever investment in Quebec will produce material destined for use in Ford EVs, while helping to shape North America’s EV ecosystem, according to Ford Canada President Bev Goodman.

“We’re excited to build this new facility to create a vertically integrated, closed-loop battery manufacturing supply chain in North America designed to help make electric vehicles more accessible for millions of people over time,” she said in a release.

Goodman joined executives from EcoPro and SK On, as well as top federal and provincial government officials at the announcement in Bécancour.

“This investment shows once again that Canada is the green strategic partner of choice for global leaders in the automotive industry,” said François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry. “Today, we are strengthening Quebec’s key position in the electric vehicle supply chain, while continuing to build Canada’s battery ecosystem.”

Quebec Premier François Legault said the spending from Ford and its partners is “laying the foundations” for the province to become a leader in North America’s green economy.

The federal and provincial governments will pay approximately half of the upfront project costs. Ottawa has committed to a conditional loan of C$322 million ($238 million USD) through its Strategic Innovation Fund, while Quebec will provide a partially forgivable loan of C$322 million through Investissement Québec.

Plant opening in 2026

The plant, which will be known officially as EcoPro CAM Canada, is scheduled to open in the first half of 2026. It will have capacity to produce an average of 45,000 tons of cathode active materials (CAM) annually and employ more than 345, according to Ottawa.

CAM is an integral part of lithium ion battery chemistry used for the positive electrode in battery cells. In most EV batteries today, it’s a blend of lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese.

The investment by Ford and the two South Korea-based battery technology companies has been in the works for more than a year. In July 2022, the three companies announced plans for a joint investment at an undetermined location in North America. And in February, EcoPro formed a pair of Canadian subsidiaries as talks with the federal and provincial governments progressed.

The approximately $890 million investment (C$1.2 billion) is also the latest in a series of big battery supply chain projects to take root in Bécancour.

Last year, GM and South Korea-based Posco Future M began construction on a separate CAM plant in the city on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, while German chemical company BASF purchased land for a similar endeavour.

Further upstream, a range of battery mineral miners and processing companies are pursuing projects that would supply the Ford and GM plants with lithium, nickel and other key battery ingredients. Among others, mining giant Vale is studying construction of a nickel sulfate refinery, while homegrown Quebec miner Nemaska Lithium is advancing work on a lithium hydroxide plant.