Securing the Critical Battery Materials Supply Chain in the Southeast

The southeast United States is emerging as a national hub for manufacturing batteries, components, and critical materials, positioning the country as a globally competitive player in the industry. With continued private and public sector support, this industry will bolster the energy, mobility, and defense sectors crucial to U.S. global economic competitiveness, grid reliability, and national security. To explore this opportunity, C2ES is convening key stakeholders across the southeast region to develop approaches to accelerate the expansion of the regional critical battery materials supply chain through fostering supportive state and federal policies, creative partnerships, entrepreneurship and innovation, and capital investment.

Interested in Participating?

Fill out the interest form.

Express Interest

PROMOTING THE DOMESTIC BATTERY SUPPLY CHAIN

Recent public and private sector investments in advanced energy technology and manufacturing in the United States are transforming the American energy economy, creating new opportunities for companies to produce products and inputs domestically to serve the new energy future, and unlock benefits for communities across the nation. However, market uncertainty, knowledge gaps, a lack of coordination, political polarization, and workforce challenges hinder the ability of states and localities to capitalize on this opportunity. At the same time, security challenges to international supply chains of critical materials and components hinder the ability of the United States achieve affordable, reliable, and independent energy. 

Since 2021, companies have announced more than $84 billion in investments across Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama in batteries, minerals, stationary storage, and vehicle production. But work remains to ensure these investments are realized, promote the development of complementary infrastructure, and continue growing investment into minerals processing and refining, component production, and innovation. 

ABOUT THE BATTERY SUPPLY CHAIN IN THE SOUTHEAST

  • Battery Supply Chain 101

    Follow the journey of battery materials as they are transformed from raw minerals into functioning batteries used in electric vehicles and energy storage systems. Learn about mining and extraction, processing and refining, battery component manufacturing, battery pack assembly, final product assembly, and recycling. 

    Factsheet
  • Gaps in the Southeast U.S. Battery Supply Chain

    The southeast is rapidly becoming a central hub for battery manufacturing, but critical parts of the supply chain lag in development, leaving the region dependent on imports and vulnerable to market shocks. 

    Factsheet
  • Economic Clustering 101

    Economic clustering is when complementary industries, institutions, and workforces locate near each other. By setting up shop in close proximity, businesses can trade with each other, develop specialized workforces, and cultivate a specialized global competitive advantage that spurs rapid economic growth. 

    Factsheet

REGIONAL KICKOFF: KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE

C2ES will host a regional roundtable in May 2025 to highlight regional leadership, identify focus areas for in-depth research and policy development, and kick off a series of convenings across the region to collaboratively develop a regional roadmap for the battery and critical mineral and material industry. This event will bring together key stakeholders including: businesses of all sizes, state and local policymakers, academic experts and leading researchers, economic development organizations, nonprofits, and other public- and private-sector partners. Informed by this event, C2ES will host subsequent state-specific, issue-oriented events to convene focused workshops on policy solutions to supply chain gaps and opportunities. 

Key topics for discussion include: 

  • Mitigating risks to the domestic battery materials supply chain 
  • Developing the Southeast as a hub for research and innovation on batteries and critical materials 
  • Streamlining siting and reducing transportation burdens by developing supporting infrastructure 
  • Identifying workforce development strategies to upskill existing workers and attract new talent 
  • Exploring innovative policy solutions to promote the global competitiveness of American-made products

SOUTH CAROLINA’S BATTERY AND ELECTRIC VEHICLE SUPPLY CHAINS

South Carolina is a growing leader in the manufacturing of EVs and the batteries that power them. The state’s strong manufacturing sector, advanced research institutions, and ability to attract new investments provide an opportunity to reap the benefits of new energy industries. Our November 2024 roundtable in Columbia, South Carolina convened stakeholders to discuss South Carolina’s opportunity to help build out an American supply chain for the sourcing, refining, and recycling of critical materials for electric vehicle and battery manufacturing.  

Learn more about our regional roundtable in Columbia, South Carolina here. 

ABOUT THE REGIONAL ROUNDTABLE PROGRAM

The United States and the world are transitioning to a low-carbon economy. Communities across the country have an opportunity to leverage their existing advantages to lead the transition while supporting good-paying jobs, attracting investment, and improving quality of life. While the low-carbon economy offers new opportunities for many communities, capitalizing on those opportunities will require proactively developing new strategies to attract investment. 

The private sector is leaning in, and supportive federal and state policies have proven crucial to supporting community efforts to attract investment and grow a secure, resilient, domestic advanced energy manufacturing base. Communities are best positioned to identify the opportunities they want to pursue, the challenges they will need to navigate, and which supports are most impactful. Local perspectives can offer unique nuance and grounding to federal climate policy conversations. 

The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions’ (C2ES) regional roundtable program elevates the perspectives of community stakeholders to inform state and federal policy needs and identify concrete next steps to bring home the economic opportunity of investing in the low-carbon transition. Through interactive group discussions, educational programming, and informative sessions—supplemented with research and analysis—C2ES’s regional roundtable program brings together leaders of business, government, and communities to explore these opportunities and develop collaborative policy solutions. 

Learn more about the regional roundtable program here. 

✕