Advanced battery plant to drive jobs, investment into Mid Michigan

Economic development officials in Mid Michigan say a new advanced battery plant will help establish the region as a key player in the green energy sector, and help drive job growth and millions of dollars into the area over the next several years.

Dow Kokam -- a lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility in Midland -- broke ground early last week on a $600 million plant that will employ about 800 people when it is completed in 2015. The company is a joint venture of The Dow Chemical Company and TK Advanced Battery LLC.

Last week's groundbreaking ceremony drew national attention with the arrival of Vice President Joe Biden, who praised the plant for taking steps to help reduce the country's reliance on oil and for helping to rebuild Michigan's manufacturing base. The plant will produce batteries for next-generation hybrid and electric vehicles.

"This project is a substantial stimulus for growth for Midland and the Great Lakes Bay Region," says Scott Walker, executive director of Midland Tomorrow, the Midland area's economic development organization. "The first phase of construction alone is a $322 million investment that will provide more than 1,000 regional construction jobs. And they anticipate that by the end of construction, the project will have led to 2,720 direct and indirect jobs."

Walker says the technology produced at the facility also is likely to drive other technologies and projects into the region.

"We have a distinct opportunity over the next five years to build out this industry in the state of Michigan," Walker says.

The new plant is one of five battery cell plants now underway in the state. When it is fully operational, Dow Kokam expects to build battery cells and packs for up to 30,000 all-electric or 60,000 hybrid vehicles a year.

"It's our aim to move quickly and efficiently to get electric vehicles to be more widely available," says Kristina Schnepf, global public affairs director for Dow Kokam. "And it's representative of where the economy is headed in alternative energy manufacturing."

Writer: Jenny Cromie
Source: Midland Tomorrow, Scott Walker; Dow Kokam, Kristina Schnepf