Indian Battery Materials Maker To Build Its First US Plant In North Carolina: 'Historic Investment'

Indian battery materials maker Epsilon Advanced Materials (EAM) is entering the U.S. battery industry with a manufacturing facility in North Carolina.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called it a "historic investment" that promises 500 clean energy jobs.

EAM, a subsidiary of Mumbai-based Epsilon Carbon, was established in 2018. It is today a global provider of synthetic graphite used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

The $650-million battery materials and components plant will come up in North Carolina's Brunswick County and is expected to start making synthetic graphite anode material, necessary for batteries for EVs and other storage systems, in 2026. The facility will be fully operational by 2031 and is expected to generate 50,000 tons (45,359 metric tons) of the product annually when at full capacity.

"This facility is the largest Indian investment in the U.S. electric vehicle battery industry and we're proud to have North Carolina as the centerpiece of our U.S. manufacturing strategy," Vikram Handa, EAM founder and managing director, said in a statement. "Having an environmentally friendly world-class facility in North Carolina will allow EAM to provide synthetic and natural graphite anodes to the growing EV battery industry faster, more reliably and at a competitive cost."

North Carolina has been making efforts to develop the state into an EV battery hub and has offered incentives to companies in return for creating green energy jobs.

EAM will reportedly be given $33 million in incentives if the Indian company fulfills the hiring and investment criteria. The company said it could employ up to 500 people in Brunswick County.

The current average wage in Brunswick County is $46,464. The wages for those employed at the EAM facility will depend on their position, but the average salary for the new positions is expected to be $52,264.

North Carolina has also recently offered incentives to Toyota for its battery plant in Randolph County and VinFast for its electric vehicle factory in Chatham County.

"North Carolina continues to lead the way in the transition to a clean energy economy by attracting good-paying jobs from great companies like Epsilon that make our state stronger and healthier," Cooper said. "This historic investment will bring 500 clean energy jobs to Brunswick County, helping both our economy and our environment."