Energy Department announces new steps on US battery production

The Department of Energy on Tuesday announced a series of policy actions to scale up manufacturing of advanced battery technology, part of a broader White House effort to promote battery production in the U.S.

The actions announced include a new national blueprint for developing lithium batteries through the end of the decade. It features several key goals for the decade on battery development, including ensuring domestic access to raw materials; promoting electrode, cell and pack manufacturing in the U.S.; and scaling up recycling and reuse of end-of-life batteries.

“Strengthening our domestic supply chain will accelerate our efforts to decarbonize the economy—helping to power electric vehicles and boost grid storage and resiliency,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement. “We must seize the opportunity for the U.S. to lead an emerging global industry to create good-paying jobs for American workers that will be in demand for decades to come.”

The Energy Department’s Federal Energy Management Program will also conduct a review throughout the federal government to analyze opportunities to use battery storage at federal sites. The effort comes as part of the Biden administration’s broader efforts to reach 100 percent clean electricity by 2035.

The announcement comes after President Biden in February signed an executive order requiring the administration to conduct a 100-day review of vulnerabilities in the supply chain for products including advanced batteries. The Energy Department has since submitted its recommendations to the White House, as well as a series of recommendations to Congress on funding for high-capacity battery development.

The Energy Department on Monday announced an “Earthshots” initiative with a goal of cutting clean energy costs, including an initial goal of cutting clean hydrogen energy costs to $1 per kilogram by 2030.

“The Energy Earthshots are an all-hands-on-deck call for innovation, collaboration and acceleration of our clean energy economy by tackling the toughest remaining barriers to quickly deploy emerging clean energy technologies at scale,” Granholm said Monday.