Gotion abandons plans to build battery cell factory in Michigan
The Gotion electric vehicle battery plant in Michigan was planned on a 211-hectare site in Big Rapids Township and Green Township in Mecosta County. Gotion was aiming to invest 2.36 billion US dollars in the plant and create 2,350 jobs, as was announced in September 2022.
The project has now come to a standstill. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) has stated that the $125 million state grant towards project construction was never paid out. At the same time, MEDC wants to reclaim another grant of $23.6 million that had already been paid and used to purchase the land.
Last month, the MEDC sent a letter to Gotion explaining that the company was in default of its grant agreement because no work had been carried out on the project site for over 120 days. Gotion was then given 30 days to remedy the default. According to Reuters, a lawyer for Gotion’s US subsidiary responded in a letter to the MEDC stating that it was “utterly false” to accuse the company of abandoning the project.
In the letter, Gotion’s lawyer writes of a “barrage of attacks” that Gotion has faced at this location, along with resistance from the Green Township community. The lawyer proposed “an open and candid discussion about the viability of the project and the long-term plan for this site.”
Representative John Moolenaar, a Republican from Michigan and chairman of a special committee on China, praised the withdrawal of government support for the project. He had worked with Green Township residents to oppose the project and prevent US government subsidies for China-linked battery companies such as Gotion.
Residents in Green Township have repeatedly protested against the project since it was first announced, alleging environmental risks (e.g., water consumption, chemicals, industry in a rather rural area) and the involvement of a Chinese company with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The protests became a political issue. In a recall election at the end of 2023, the existing township administration that had supported the project was voted out of office largely due to voter opposition to the project. During their 2024 election campaign, now Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump made their opposition to the project an election issue. The Mecosta County Board of Commissioners also changed its statements and resolutions of support for the project, taking a more critical stance.
Gotion High-Tech is based in Hefei, China. In 2020, Volkswagen acquired a stake in the battery cell manufacturer, investing around one billion euros for a 26 per cent shareholding. VW became the largest Gotion shareholder in 2021, with its stake currently estimated at between 26 and 30 per cent, depending on the source. Gotion is one of Volkswagen’s key battery partners and has contributed to the construction of the battery cell factory of VW subsidiary PowerCo in Germany, which is soon scheduled to commence production of the German company’s standard cell. Volkswagen has not publicly commented on Gotion’s now-halted plans in Michigan.
This article was first published by Florian Treiß for electrive’s German edition
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