Two US battery materials specialists, EnergyX and Wildcat Discovery Technologies, have announced a $230 million joint venture to build a commercial-scale LFP cathode plant in Texas — Phase 1 of what EnergyX is branding its Battery Mecca complex, and one of the first meaningful US-domiciled LFP cathode facilities outside China.
15,000 Tonnes Of LFP A Year, Powered By EnergyX Lithium
The partners plan to produce 15,000 metric tonnes per year of lithium iron phosphate, the cathode chemistry that has come to dominate cost-sensitive EV and stationary storage batteries. The plant will sit on 330 acres EnergyX has already secured at the TexAmericas Center in northeast Texas, picked for its rail access, existing utilities and proximity to Red River Army Depot. EnergyX, which controls roughly 50,000 acres of lithium mining rights co-located with the cathode site, expects to supply most or all of the lithium itself out of its planned Project Lonestar lithium plant.
The Holyvolt Connection
Wildcat Discovery Technologies, a San Diego-based cathode R&D specialist, was acquired by Sweden's Holyvolt Group in March 2026 and brings the chemistry and high-throughput process know-how. Holyvolt has also been picked up by the Investment Accelerator Program of the Swedish Energy Agency, giving it a route to European capital as it scales US production. EnergyX founder and CEO Teague Egan described the cathode plant as a stepping stone toward a vertically integrated battery campus that will eventually add lithium metal anode production and high-energy-density cell manufacturing.
DOE Funding, Defense Demand And A Crowded LFP Race
The partners say federal support from the US Department of Energy would accelerate construction, commissioning and scale-up; an application is moving through the pipeline. The siting next to Red River Army Depot is no accident either: the US Army is steadily expanding its interest in vehicle electrification, anti-idling battery kits and autonomous platforms — a thesis backed by recent deals such as Harbinger Motors' tie-up with Rheinmetall. The project will also slot into a fast-thickening US battery build-out alongside the Stellantis-CATL Zaragoza LFP gigafactory in Europe and the new Ford Energy 20 GWh US storage program.
Reporting based on coverage from CleanTechnica and the EnergyX/Wildcat joint press release.