Shanghai Shanshan Lithium Battery Material Technology Co. Ltd has reserved a plot to construct a plant in the GigaVaasa industrial zone on the western coast of Finland, according to a December 15 statement, Bloomberg
reported.
It could have an annual production capacity of 100,000 tons of anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, based on synthetic graphite. That equates to a battery manufacturing output capacity of about 100 gigawatt-hours, enough to supply about 1.5 million electric vehicles, according to company estimates.
The Nordic country is emerging as a key mining and processing hub for battery metals amid intensifying competition between countries and has one of Europe’s biggest supplies of key minerals in its territory. China, the world’s biggest EV and battery maker, has announced tighter rules on the export of graphite while the U.S. has called for a reduction in reliance on Chinese components.
The Shanshan factory would create more than 1,000 new jobs when in full-scale operation. The next step is to prepare an environmental impact assessment.
Other companies assessing the feasibility of establishing a cathode material plant in the GigaVaasa industrial zone include Finnish Minerals Group and Freyr Battery AS.
