(Yicai) Sept. 26 -- Contemporary Amperex Technology, the world's largest electric vehicle battery manufacturer, has once again refuted media reports of its partner Ford Motor halting the construction of a USD3.5 billion electric vehicle battery plant in the United States.

"It is false news, and construction is smoothly underway," China News Service reported, citing an employee of the Ningde-based battery maker's securities department.

Tech Crunch and Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Ford has confirmed that it had stopped work at the Michigan plant which was supposed to use CATL's lithium iron phosphate battery technology.

In July, it was reported that two committees of the US House of Representatives said they are investigating the partnership whereas Ford was still waiting for guidance from the US Department of the Treasury to ensure that the facility would comply with the requirements of the Inflation Reduction Act that enable tax credits. At that point, CATL claimed that progress on the project was smooth.

The media reports yesterday said that the automaker has not made a final decision about the planned investment. "We’re pausing work and limiting spending on construction on the Marshall project until we’re confident about our ability to competitively operate the plant." 

The American car company did not mention whether the suspension is related to a recent strike the Union of Automobile Workers initiated against Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.

The BlueOval Battery Park Michigan project was slated to have an annual capacity of about 35 gigawatt-hours of batteries and employ 2,500 people when production was supposed to begin in 2026, according to Ford's statement in February. 

Editor: Emmi Laine