BASF has funded the construction of the new battery material production facility, which is expected to be fully operational in 2012, with the help of a $24.6m grant from the DOE under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The company is licensed to produce and market Argonne National Laboratory’s patented lithium-stabilized Nickel-Cobalt-Manganese cathode materials for use in advanced batteries that are claimed to offer higher energy density, longer life, and improved safety due to higher temperature stability.
BASF, which has been investing in lithium-ion cathode materials research and development since 2005, plans to continue to further lithium-ion battery application development at its research facilities in Beachwood, Ohio, and Ludwigshafen, Germany.
BASF president of catalysts division Frank Bozich said that this new facility will put BASF and the state of Ohio at the leading edge of the North American cathode materials market.
“As the world’s leading chemical company, BASF has the ability to make advanced cathode materials widely available as next generation lithium-ion battery production begins to ramp up in facilities throughout the country,” Bozich said.
