North Carolina Construction News staff writer
Materials science company Forge Nano, Inc. will launch a new lithium-ion battery business with $165 million to build a lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant in Morrisville bringing hundreds of high-paying clean energy jobs to the state. Forge Battery expects the facility to be completed in 2026.
“North Carolina’s growing leadership in clean energy can be seen everywhere you look, and Forge Battery’s decision continues our momentum,” said Governor Roy Cooper. “New jobs, new investment, and new opportunities for our people are coming fast as we embrace this vital new sector of the global economy.”
Based in Colorado, Forge intends to build and operate a battery manufacturing facility in Morrisville with Gigawatt hour (GWh) capacity and utilize Forge Nano’s proprietary Atomic Armor technology to produce high-performance lithium-ion batteries that meet or beat performance targets of industry standard lithium-ion technology.
Atomic Armor also expects to improve production efficiency and drive down Forge Battery cell costs due to the removal of expensive material additives used in the traditional lithium-ion manufacturing process. Forge Battery will supply batteries to a wide range of domestic and international clients.
“Lithium-ion cells utilizing Forge Nano’s Atomic Armor technology have exceeded our customer’s expectations, and in turn, increased demand for the technology that outstrips the current manufacturing capabilities,” says Paul Lichty, CEO of Forge Nano. “We are extremely excited to launch Forge Battery in North Carolina, where we intend to produce batteries for the world’s most demanding applications, while showcasing the power of Forge Nano’s Atomic Armor coating equipment in a large-scale manufacturing environment.”
Forge Battery’s project in North Carolina will be supported by a job development investment grant (JDIG). Using a formula that takes into account the new tax revenues generated by 204 new jobs and the company’s original capital investment target of $142 million, the JDIG agreement authorizes the potential reimbursement to the company of up to $1,525,500, spread over 12 years.
“We welcome Forge Battery to Morrisville and Wake County,” said N.C. Senator Gale Adcock. “This innovative company becomes the latest building block in a growing clean industry cluster that’s quickly taking root in the State of North Carolina, and we couldn’t be more pleased.”