Umicore in Loyalist
Building the Future in Loyalist Township:
Umicore’s Planned Battery Materials Production Plant
Umicore Rechargeable Battery Materials (RBM), a business unit of Belgium-based Umicore, is preparing to build a battery materials production plant in Loyalist Township. This plant, the first of its kind in North America, will be a critical part of Canada’s electric vehicle (EV) supply chain, and will bring environmentally sustainable economic growth to the region.
Umicore RBM’s planned facility will combine large-scale cathode and precursor materials manufacturing at a single site; these materials are essential components in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
When fully operational, the facility will have the potential to reach an annual production capacity capable of powering approximately one million electric vehicles by the end of the decade.
The facility will be located in the Taylor Kidd Industrial Park in Loyalist Township. This area of approximately 145 hectares (350 acres) is zoned for industrial development.
(*image= preliminary conceptual design)
What are battery materials and what are they used for?
Cathode active materials (CAM) are critical materials to produce batteries used in electric vehicles (EVs).
Cathode materials determine the functionality of Li-ion batteries used in electrified cars. They determine the amount of energy that can be stored in the battery. The driving range, weight, acceleration, charging speed and battery life of an electric car depend on the cathode material used in lithium-ion batteries.
Cathode materials represent approximately half the cost of the batteries used in EVs.
What’s the difference between CAM and pCAM?
The pCAM or precursor cathode active material is a high-value engineered material containing nickel, cobalt, and manganese resulting from the first step of CAM production. This precursor is then transformed into a cathode active material (CAM) by combining and mixing those metals with lithium.
Cathode active material(CAM) is a powder containing lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese. CAM is our final product and supplied to battery cell makers who will integrate the different components of the battery.
Find out more about Umicore’s Cathode Active Materials
The fully operational facility will be a long-standing economic engine for the Greater Kingston region and East Central Ontario. The plant will provide several hundred skilled, permanent jobs to people across the region, and help support many additional spin-off jobs through partners throughout the region and province.
In the short term, the construction of the plant is expected to generate over 1,000 jobs in the region. Umicore has already begun local recruitment, and will continue to fill construction, operational, and support roles in the near future.
All vacancies are published on rbm.umicore.com/canada. Candidates can apply and submit their CV online. By creating their personal profile, candidates can be notified automatically about new vacancies by e-mail.
The proposed plant is a complex facility that will require numerous goods and services throughout both construction and operation. While some equipment will be sourced internationally, with partners established through Umicore’s long history of global experience, we are also eager to explore opportunities with local partners.
Umicore has established procurement processes that are used to analyze a variety of factors, including alignment between supplier capabilities and Umicore needs, market comparisons, cost, schedule, and alignment with Umicore’s policies and principles.
Local businesses interested in working with Umicore are invited to submit their information below.
Submitting your application does not mean that you will be automatically included in our supplier list. Only if product offering matches up to some of our potential needs and the criteria are initially (technical, commercial, within market, etc.) met we could potentially entertain putting on the bidders list and begin the prequalification process.
Umicore is committed to environmental sustainability in all our facilities and processes.
As a leading global supplier of low-carbon battery materials, Umicore is helping to drive global decarbonization through our unique role in the worldwide battery supply chain. We use responsibly sourced raw materials in our products and are committed to the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions across our global operations by 2035.
Our forthcoming facility in Ontario aligns with our commitment to high environmental sustainability standards through:
- Energy efficiency and the use of green electricity for all facility operations;
- Ensuring any emissions to water or air meet the most stringent environmental standards.
Find out more about Umicore’s commitment to sustainability
Connecting with Our Neighbours
Umicore is excited to become part of the fabric of the regional economy and community in the region we will soon call home. We genuinely care about the communities we operate in and are eager to build transparent and open dialogue with our neighbours in Loyalist Township.
Umicore hosted a Meet & Greet with direct neighbours of the project in March 2023, followed by an Open House open to all interested parties in June 2023. These events provided initial opportunities to learn more about the project, meet Umicore representatives, and have questions answered. We thank everyone who has attended our events, shown interest in the planned facility, and welcomed Umicore to your community.
We have also established and will continue to develop strong relationships with our government partners, including Loyalist Township, the Government of Ontario, and the Government of Canada.
Questions? Get in touch
We welcome the opportunity to continue to build an open and communicative dialogue with the people of East Central Ontario, who will become our neighbours, community, and
skilled employees. We will keep the community informed of ongoing opportunities to connect directly with Umicore team members.
Should you have any questions, we invite you to contact us at info.loyalist@umicore.com. A member of our team will be in touch as soon as possible.
Engaging with Indigenous Peoples
Umicore is committed to undertaking respectful engagement with those Indigenous peoples upon whose territory we will be building and working. We have been actively educating ourselves on the rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada, as well as the Crown’s duty to consult, and our responsibility thereunder.
We have and will continue to share information and maintain a transparent dialogue with affected First Nations and Indigenous communities, with the objective of establishing durable relationships built upon a foundation of respect and trust throughout the life cycle of this facility.
Questions? Get in touch
Should you have any questions, we invite you to contact us at info.loyalist@umicore.com. A member of our team will be in touch as soon as possible.