Specialty minerals firm ICL revealed plans Wednesday to construct a new $400 million lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode active materials (CAM) manufacturing facility in St. Louis, MO to support the country’s growing lithium battery industry. The company announced that the site will be the first large-scale plant of its kind in the US.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) awarded ICL with a $197 million grant with funds provided through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“LFP is a critical solution for the US energy-storage, mobility, and infrastructure market,” Phil Brown, president of Phosphate Specialties and managing director of North America for ICL, said in a company release. “The $197 million investment from the Department of Energy is crucial to building a domestic manufacturer, which can compete globally while providing a much-needed safety net for American manufacturers in the EV, battery, and energy storage industries.”

The 100,000-sq-ft plant will be erected in two phases. Each production line at the site will have a capacity of 15,000 mt/yr of LFP material. Phase one of the project is slated to reach completion in 2024 and the facility is expected to ramp up to full production by 2025. Aleees will provide LFP process technology for the facility.

LFP batteries are expected to account for 30% of all shipped batteries by 2025, driven by increased adoption of EVs.

ICL intends to build the new facility at its existing Carondelet location in St. Louis.