Chinese EV Battery Factory Headed To Michigan

Could American auto workers soon work in a Chinese factory that gets its resources from both the Taliban and the US government? Gotion High-Tech, a Chinese company, has struck a deal with Michigan’s government to build a factory for electric vehicle batteries in Big Rapids, Michigan. The deal’s details, however, are so bizarre that they feel like they’re out of a movie or TV show. However, it’s all very real and highlights globalization’s impact on the world.

EV incentives open the door

The Biden Administration has committed to pushing for a future where most– if not all– cars on the road are electric vehicles (EVs). However, the materials required to build the batteries that EVs run on aren’t cheap or easy to come by. Cobalt, one of the elements needed for EVs, mostly goes through China. Despite most of the world’s cobalt being found in the Congo, China still controls most of the African country’s mines.

Opening an EV battery factory in the US would most likely accelerate EV production in America. However, the deal will also place a Chinese factory on US soil. Because of China’s restrictive form of government, the factory could have a direct link to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

This notion has caused many Michiganders to protest the new factory. However, the deal will not only go forward but will most likely receive a massive amount of money from US taxpayers. Out of the $2.4 billion dollars the factory will reportedly cost, it’s been suggested that over $700 million of taxpayer money will go into the factory via Michigan’s government.

Why bring a Chinese factory?

Governor Whitmer claims the move will benefit Michiganders, highlighting that Gotion High-Tech’s factory will create 2350 jobs in the area. And, as mentioned above, having an EV battery factory in the state will likely boost productivity. Building EV batteries on US soil will undoubtedly speed up EV production.

With Michigan’s history as the automaking center of the US, and one of the most competitive auto industries in the world, it makes sense the state would want to secure its position as car manufacturing adjusts to the government’s current incentives.

Once again, however, the situation isn’t so clear-cut. Reports suggest that Gotion High-Tech will include bringing up to 300 employees from China to work at the Big Rapids factory. It is unknown whether this number will take away from the 2350 jobs the factory is expected to create in Michigan.

Where does the Taliban fit in?

With mounting tensions between the US and China, particularly over the prospect of Chinese espionage on US soil, the Big Rapids factory is raising eyebrows. However, the bizarre details surrounding this deal keep adding up.

After President Biden ordered US troops to leave Afghanistan after over a decade of occupying the country, the Taliban that US troops had kept at bay quickly took control of the country. As China attempts to get access to lithium, another costly element that’s crucial to making EV batteries, they have reached out to Afghanistan for access to their lithium mines.

And so, globalization has come to this. We will most likely have a Chinese factory on US Soil, where American workers will use materials sourced from the Taliban to build electric vehicle batteries.