Project Bulletin: June 10, 2024

The new Lokomotion Technology Center aims to enable sustainable production on over 56 acres in southern Finland.

Rendering courtesy of Metso

After acquiring the Lokomotion technology center in the Lahdesjärvi neighborhood of Tampere, Finland, in 2021, Metso now plans to move all operations from Hatanpää to this site moving forward. The sustainable technology company will invest $162 million in the first phase of construction for the initial 365,972 sq. ft. of the over-710,400-sq.-ft. new production facility. This phase will bring assembly and testing facilities spaces to manufacture mobile crushers, in addition to storage facilities for components and materials used for aggregates equipment. Metso produces equipment used for the construction of roads and railway tracks, among other infrastructure uses. Construction will begin in 2024 and the facility is expected to become operational by late 2027. The company plans to move its crusher factory, research center, maintenance workshop and offices to the site by the mid-2030s.

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Air Liquide strategically locates near Micron Technology’s new Boise site.

Photo courtesy of Micron Technology Inc.

To support Micron Technology’s $15 billion semiconductor plant in Boise, Idaho, gas company Air Liquide now has plans to move into the region. A $250 million investment, announced last week, will go toward the construction of an industrial gas production facility in Boise. Gas distributed from this site will supply Micron’s operations with gases critical to the fabrication of semiconductors such as ultra-pure nitrogen used in processes such as etching, deposition and dipping, Air Liquide aims to help Micron increase productivity and ensure quality across its operations. The plant is expected to become operational in 2025, creating hundreds of new jobs.

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It is currently undisclosed where in Morocco Gotion plans to build its new EV battery plant.

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Thanks to a new $1.3 billion investment from Chinese battery manufacturing company Gotion, Morocco has just landed its first EV battery gigafactory. Gotion will initially introduce a battery capacity of 20 gigawatt-hours (GWh) but plans to scale to 100 GWh in years to come. This news follows the company’s plans to look for a European site to expand its EV portfolio, which could include collaboration with another battery manufacturer, InoBat. Gotion has not stated whether or not this facility will be shared with InoBat as of yet. As the company expands its battery capacity in the future the total investment could come to nearly $6.5 billion, according to the Moroccan prime
minister’s office.

Reports compiled and written by Alexis Elmore, edited by Adam Bruns