Chinese EV battery maker Eve joins hands with partners including Daimler Truck to set up a US$2.6 billion US plant

Eve Energy to invest US$150 million in a joint venture with Daimler Truck, Electrified Power and Paccar, in a 21 gigawatt-hours US battery plant

The US$2.64 billion plant, will use Eve’s technologies to develop and manufacture lithium-ion-phosphate batteries for commercial vehicles

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A charging plug at a Beijing Jingneng Clean Energy Co. charging station in Beijing, China. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 8:00am, 8 Sep 2023

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) battery producer Eve Energy has signed a deal with a clutch of foreign firms including Daimler Truck to build a factory in the US, the latest example of China’s growing prowess in manufacturing key components for EVs.

The Huizhou-based company, the mainland’s fourth-largest EV battery producer, said it would invest US$150 million for a 10 per cent stake in a joint venture with Daimler Truck, Electrified Power and Paccar, which will own and operate a 21 gigawatt-hours (GWh) battery plant. The three foreign investors will invest US$830 million and hold a 30 per cent stake of the venture each, according to a statement Eve filed with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Thursday.

The US$2.64 billion plant, whose location has not been revealed, will use Eve’s technologies to develop and manufacture lithium-ion-phosphate (LFP) batteries for commercial vehicles, Eve said, adding that the three partners will be the major customers of the venture.

“Products will be mainly used in electric commercial vehicles in the North American market,” it said. “The tie-up will bring benefits to all the relevant parties in lowering development and production costs.”

China’s top electric vehicle (EV) battery makers are losing market share to their smaller rivals as competition intensifies in the fast-growing sector buoyed by the growing appetite for green cars. Photo Getty Images

Eve installed a total of 8GWh batteries in electric cars in the first seven months of 2023, taking a 2.2 per cent share of the global market.

Worldwide, it is in eighth place, behind three Chinese rivals CATL, BYD and CALB, according to data by Seoul-based SNE Research.