CATL open to US expansion if Trump approves

11/13/2024 05:07 AM

Tesla battery supplier Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) is open to building a factory in the United States if President-elect Donald Trump approves of Chinese investments. 

CATL's founder and chairman, Robin Zeng, recently said that his company has always wanted to invest in the United States.

"Originally, when we wanted to invest in the US, the US government said no. For me, I'm really open-minded," said Zeng told Reuters.

The relationship between Chinese battery suppliers and US companies has been scrutinized under the present administration. CATL has ties to Tesla, Ford, and, most recently, General Motors. In 2023, CATL's relationship with Ford was questioned by the United States government. 

Ford had announced plans to build a $3.5 billion battery in Marshall, Michigan. The legacy automakers also planned to license technology from CATL for its billion-dollar battery plant.

In February 2023, Florida Senator Marco Rubio called an investigation into Ford's plans to license technology from CATL.

"I am alarmed at Ford's plan to establish a large, Michigan-based factory, structured as a wholly owned subsidiary that licenses its technology from CATL. 

"As such, I write to request a Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) review of the licensing agreement, as well as demand that no federal funds – especially monies or tax credits granted via the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169) – go to enrich PRC national champion CATL, or any other Beijing-supported company, directly or indirectly," stated an emailed statement to TESLARTATI from Rubio's office. 

The US Congress' House Ways and Means Committee wrote to Ford about its collaboration with CATL and how it might go against the purpose of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Under the IRA, China is designated a "Foreign Entity of Concern" (FEOC). 

In an email to Ford CEO Jim Farley, US Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granhold stated that her department's "number one" priority" is to avoid having taxpayer dollars flow to China.

In March 2024, news broke that General Motors was considering using CATL technology in a joint battery plant. The GM-CATL joint battery factory was reportedly planned for North America, in the United States or Mexico.

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