US to provide $7.54 billion loan to Stellantis-Samsung joint venture

The US Department of Energy revealed on Monday that it plans to lend up to $7.54 billion to a joint venture between Stellantis, the parent of Chrysler, and Samsung SDI to help build two lithium-ion battery plants for electric vehicles in Indiana.

The conditional commitment still needs to be finalized and includes $6.85 billion in principle and $688 million in capital interest for the StarPlus Energy joint venture.

According to CNBC, the Energy Department said the project will build batteries in Kokomo, Indiana, for Stellantis electric vehicles and will produce about 67 gigawatt-hours of batteries at full capacity, enough to power about 670,000 vehicles annually.

It is not yet clear whether the department will be able to finalize the low-cost, government-backed loan before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20. He has criticized the Biden administration’s efforts to stimulate electric vehicle production.