Pentagon Offers Battery Startup 6K $250M Loan for U.S. Plant

WASHINGTON, Nov 6 (OPA) — The Department of Defense offered a $250 million conditional loan to North Andover, Massachusetts-based startup 6K to construct a manufacturing plant in Tennessee. The facility will leverage a specialized microwave-powered production process aimed at cutting dependence on Chinese battery suppliers for military and domestic applications.

Under the proposed initiative, the 12-year-old company will utilize the federal financing to scale operations using its proprietary technology. The system applies microwaves to heat metals into plasma before depositing them onto surfaces, significantly reducing the standard production steps required to manufacture essential cathode materials for lithium iron phosphate and other battery chemistries.

The financing follows previous federal hurdles for the enterprise. The firm previously secured a $50 million grant from the Department of Energy under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2023. That award was subsequently canceled by the Trump administration during a review of prior administration funding, compelling the firm to seek alternative capital.

Initial timelines for the factory targeted a 2024 launch, though regulatory shifts and broader electric vehicle market volatility delayed those deployments. With the new Department of Defense backing secured, 6K aims to establish a resilient domestic supply chain for advanced energy storage systems utilized across defense and commercial sectors.