DOE restores $57M grant to American Battery's plant
Get the Energy newsletter
Daily energy & climate — solar, EVs, oil, the policy fights and tech bets shaping the transition. Free.
- DOE reinstated a $57 million grant to American Battery Technology Co. after the company won its appeal, allowing the $115 million lithium‑hydroxide refinery project in Tonopah Flats, Nevada to proceed.
- American Battery will operate a 5,000‑metric‑ton‑per‑year lithium‑hydroxide refinery, part of a larger lithium mining project that will complement its battery‑recycling operations.
- DOE had canceled the grant in October as part of a $700 million sweep of battery and manufacturing project grants that it said failed to meet milestones or were not economically viable.
- American Battery had already completed two years of the grant and was selected for a streamlined permitting process under the White House’s National Energy Dominance Council and the FAST‑41 Permitting Council.
- Bureau of Land Management works closely with the company because the lithium deposits are on BLM‑managed land, and the project also coordinates with the Department of the Interior.
- McCarran recycling facility in Nevada, built in 2023, is now operating at full capacity, handling large‑scale batteries from data centers, AI facilities, EVs and consumer electronics, and can process CERCLA‑classified waste.
- American Battery plans a second critical‑mineral recycling plant in the Southeast United States that will substantially increase capacity beyond the Nevada facility.
Why it matters: The reinstated $57 million grant gives American Battery the capital needed to move its 5,000‑ton‑per‑year lithium‑hydroxide refinery forward, strengthening U.S. domestic battery‑material supply and supporting its recycling operations. It also shows DOE’s earlier mass cancellation can be overturned, signaling that firms meeting technical and commercial reviews can retain federal backing.
Ask SkimNews
