“Gotion decided to not burden the township or county with the effort until we have our CFIUS result from the treasury department …” Thelen said in the email.
Gotion’s battery plant has been rife with controversy since plans were announced in October 2022. Besides concerns over the environment and impact on quality of life, the main criticism of the project has been the company’s ties to China.
Gotion Inc. is a subsidiary of China-based Gotion High-Tech Co. Ltd. that was established in California in 2014. Volkswagen is the company’s largest shareholder, with a 25 percent stake. Chinese national Li Zhen, who is founder and president of the company, is the next largest shareholder at 13.6 percent.
Critics have scorned the company’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party, pointing to its articles of association as a major red flag. As of last July, they stated: “The Company shall set up a Party organization and carry out Party activities in accordance with the Constitution of the Communist Party of China.”
In response, Thelen said those terms apply to parent company Gotion High-Tech Co. Ltd. but not the North American subsidiary. The executive has also repeatedly said the company is prepared to walk away from the project if it isn’t welcome.
Gotion isn’t the only corporation facing blowback for its ties to the Far East. Ford Motor Co. has been criticized for its partnership with Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. on a $3.5 billion battery plant in Marshall.
The massive EV battery plant projects in Michigan have drawn scrutiny from the local communities to Washington, D.C., to Beijing amid elevated tensions between the U.S. and China. Also the subject of hot debate is whether these plants should qualify for lucrative federal subsidies designed to develop U.S. battery making capabilities — an industry dominated by China.
Construction on Gotion’s factory, which would produce anode and cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles, was expected to start this summer and take two years to complete. In April, the state Legislature gave final approval for a $175 million subsidy on top of a $540 million, 30-year tax break for the project, which promises to produce 2,350 jobs.
