Nouveau Monde Graphite (NMG) and GM have agreed to sign a multiyear deal to supply the automaker with 18,000 metric tons (19,842 U.S. tons) of active anode material per year. General Motors has committed a $150 million investment to the deal in support of NMG’s Phase-2 operations, which includes production of graphite ore, to battery materials. The announcement parallels an off-take agreement between NMG and Panasonic.
The supply agreement between General Motors and NMG will take place over the course of six years. In complement, GM and NMG have entered into a subscription agreement in which the automaker will provide a $150 million equity investment in NMG to develop what is expected to be the first local, carbon-neutral, ESG-driven source of natural graphite active anode materials for EV production in North America. An initial investment of $25 million will support the advancement of NMG’s Phase 2 operations at the Matawinie Mine and Bécancour Battery Material Plant in Québec.
“Our collaboration with NMG is a milestone for the industry, and in our ongoing development of a more sustainable and resilient battery supply chain,” said Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain at General Motors, Jeff Morrison. “From our assembly plants and battery cell plants in the U.S., to our investments across the supply chain, we are developing a North American EV ecosystem aimed at benefiting consumers, expanding economic opportunity, and creating a competitive advantage for GM.”
Per NMG, which cites Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, over 95 percent of the anode side in EV batteries is made from graphite, making it a high-value material in the transition to all-electric powertrains. Natural graphite will be extracted from Matawinie Mine before it is processed into active anode material at the Bécancour Battery Material Plant. From there, the active anode materials will be delivered to GM’s battery cell plants for battery production and eventual usage in General Motors EVs.
NMG has also announced a multiyear binding off-take agreement with Panasonic Energy Co. Combined with the parallel General Motors supply agreement, the two agreements cover an estimated 85 percent of NMG’s planned active anode material production at its Phase-2 Bécancour Battery Material Plant.
Subscribe to GM Authority for more General Motors business news, General Motors electric vehicle news, and around-the-clock General Motors news coverage.
Comment
Great news ice vehicle prices only need to go up another 5 percent to pay for this, yeh.