Gotion Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of China’s Gotion High-tech Co. Ltd., wants to operate electric vehicle battery plants in the Village of Manteno, Illinois and Green Charter Township, Michigan. Gotion plans to manufacture battery cells in Michigan and ship them to Manteno for assembly into battery packs. But after initially winning approvals and the backing of the governors involved, Gotion is now trying to fend off local residents determined to stop both facilities. The Illinois facility has been gearing up to begin operations, but the Trump campaign has recently made the proposed factory in Michigan an issue, and Democrats there, who once rallied to the Chinese company’s defense, are now starting to back away.
The objections are valid. For many reasons, neither plant should be permitted.
Last September, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced that Gotion had decided to build a $2 billion plant in his state to manufacture lithium batteries for EVs. The company had been awarded more …