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China’s Gotion sues Michigan’s Green Charter township to restore water to US$2.4 billion battery plant

  • Gotion’s plant is located in Big Rapids, about 60 miles (97km) north of Grand Rapids
  • The plant was expected to create 2,350 jobs and produce up to 150,000 tons of cathode material and 50,000 tons of anode material a year

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Gotion High-Tech’s Chairman Li Zhen (left), Anhui’s provincial Communist Party Secretary Han Jun (centre) and Lower Saxony’s Governor Stephan Weil (right) at the launching ceremony of Gotion’s first battery production and operation base in Europe on 18 September 2023. Photo: Gotion

China’s Gotion filed a lawsuit on Friday against Green Charter Township in Michigan, citing breach of contract over the connection of water lines to its planned US$2.36 billion battery component plant in the state.

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Gotion’s plant, located in Big Rapids, about 60 miles (97km) north of Grand Rapids, was expected to create 2,350 jobs and produce up to 150,000 tons of cathode material and 50,000 tons of anode material a year.

In the lawsuit, which was filed in a federal court in Michigan, Gotion said the township reneged on its contractual obligations after initially adopting a resolution approving the company’s plans to connect Big Rapids’ water system to the project.

Gotion is seeking a preliminary injunction from the court to direct the township to connect the water lines to its plant.

An undated photograph of protesters expressing their opposition to Gotion’s planned factory in Big Rapids, Michigan. Photo: Angel Rigas
An undated photograph of protesters expressing their opposition to Gotion’s planned factory in Big Rapids, Michigan. Photo: Angel Rigas

“This Court should order the Township to comply with its obligations under the parties’ agreement,” Gotion said in its lawsuit.

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