Orbia’s Fluoride Solutions Company Koura Receives $100 Million Award from the U.S. Department of Energy

Funding Supports National Lithium-Ion Battery Supply Chain with Plan to Develop First Manufacturing Plant in the United States for lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF6) in Louisiana

BOSTON, October 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Orbia’s Fluoride Solutions business, Koura, a global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of fluoride products, today announced that it has received a $100 million U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) award as part of the first round of bipartisan Presidential Infrastructure Act-funded projects to expand domestic electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing and the power grid and for materials and components currently imported from other countries. This award supports advanced lithium-ion battery manufacturing for supply chain safety and competitiveness.

Said Samir BharadwajCEO of Orbia, “This award marks an incredible milestone for our company and the U.S. renewable energy industry. Today, we are heading towards a clean future and achieving our goal of moving life forward. With material assets raw materials, expertise in fluorinated chemicals, and our sustainable innovation program, this grant will help us achieve lithium-ion battery safety, efficiency, and performance.”

“Recognition of this caliber from the U.S. Department of Energy propels us forward to address today’s domestic supply chain challenge for lithium-ion batteries,” said Greg Smith, Chairman of Orbia Fluoride Solutions (Koura). “The future is powered by lithium-ion batteries. We are uniquely positioned to innovate with our “mine to market” capability to meet modern needs for resilience and energy independence.

The grant will allow Koura to build the first U.S. lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF6) manufacturing facility at Koura’s existing fluorochemicals production site in St. Gabriel, Louisiana. Once operational, the proposed plant will produce up to 10,000MT of LiPF6 per year, which is enough to support the national production of more than one million fully electric vehicles per year. Koura operated its national fluorinated chemical plant in St. Gabriel since 1991 with a solid track record and strong community commitment.

A world leader in fluoride solutions, Koura has a vertically integrated supply of fluoride in North America and produces and distributes fluorinated products worldwide for a variety of applications. Fluorine is the main component of LiPF6, which is used in all lithium-ion batteries as an electrolyte salt that allows the flow of lithium ions through the battery. Currently, there is no large-scale domestic production of LiPF6. The high cost of importing into the United States and the lack of domestic manufacture of LiPF6 presented a critical risk to the lithium-ion supply chain.

“This is truly a remarkable time for manufacturing in America, as President Biden’s agenda and historic investments spur the private sector to ensure our clean energy future is made in America,” the U.S. Secretary told Energy. Jennifer M. Granholm. “Producing advanced batteries and components here at home will accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to meet the strong demand for electric vehicles, creating more well-paying jobs across the country.”

For this project, the $100 million The award will be combined with additional investment from Koura to build and start up a dedicated LiPF6 processing line in a new building at Koura’s existing site. Louisiana manufacturing site.

Additionally, the proposed LiPF6 plant will continue to support the local economy in St. Gabrielincreasing employment at the facility by up to 80 new jobs while providing Koura with the opportunity to expand its Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) business into the larger Red Stick region by providing job training, internship programs and scholarship funds.

For more information about Orbia, please visit: www.orbia.com and LinkedIn.
For more information about Koura, please visit: www.kouraglobal.com and LinkedIn.

About Orbia

Orbia is a company driven by a common goal: to advance life around the world. Orbia operates in the sectors of polymer solutions (Vestolit and Alphagary), building and infrastructure (Wavin), precision agriculture (Netafim), connectivity solutions (Dura-Line) and fluorinated solutions (Koura). Orbia’s five business groups have the collective goal of expanding access to health and well-being, reinventing the future of cities and homes, ensuring food and water security, connect communities to information and accelerate a circular economy with basic and advanced materials, specialized and innovative products. solutions. Orbia has commercial activities in more than 110 countries and operations in more than 50, with global headquarters in Boston, Mexico City, amsterdam and Tel Aviv. To learn more, visit: orbia.com.

About
Orbia Fluoride Solutions (Koura)

Orbia Koura’s Fluoride Solutions business is a global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of fluoride products that play a fundamental role in improving everyday life and shortening the path to a sustainable circular economy. With over 35 years of experience, Koura’s products are used in a wide range of applications including electric vehicles and energy storage, urban and rural infrastructure, indoor climate management, refrigeration food and medicine and even the treatment of respiratory ailments through the development of healthy systems and innovative low GWP propellants for metered dose inhalers. Koura has 1,600 employees and 13 manufacturing plants worldwide, serving 60 countries through a global sales and distribution network.

SOURCE Koura, an Orbia company