Pentagon offers 6K battery startup $250M loan
Original: Pentagon offers battery startup 6K $250M loan to build U.S. factory
Why This Matters
DoD-backed battery loans signal defense spending as a key lifeline for U.S. battery manufacturing.
The DoD conditionally approved a $250M loan for North Andover-based startup 6K to build a Tennessee battery materials factory, reducing U.S. reliance on Chinese suppliers using a microwave-plasma process.
Battery startup 6K, founded 12 years ago and based in North Andover, Mass., has won conditional approval for a $250 million Department of Defense loan to build a manufacturing plant in Tennessee. The factory will produce cathode material — a key battery component — using the company's proprietary microwave-powered process, which heats metals into a plasma and deposits them onto a surface, cutting the number of production steps and sidestepping Chinese supply chains. The process works across multiple battery chemistries, including lithium iron phosphate (LFP). The road to this point was bumpy: 6K had previously secured a $50 million Department of Energy grant under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, but the Trump administration canceled it in a broad sweep of Biden-era awards, forcing the company to reapply and push back its originally planned 2024 factory opening. Uncertainty in the EV market added further delays. The Pentagon's growing interest in domestic battery production reflects battlefield demand — from drones to communications gear — and mirrors a recent $1.4B DoD loan to rival startup Sila.