The U.S. Department of War’s Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) announced it had signed a $1.4 billion conditional loan commitment to Sila Nanotechnologies, Inc. to support the production and manufacturing of batteries.
OSC said U.S.-based Sila will use the loan, and external equity financing, on expanding production of silicon-carbon (Si/C) battery anodes, as well as build out a lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facility. Officials said the loan commitment is in line with President Donald Trump’s mandate to onshore critical materials to enhance American defense’s supply chains.
“Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump, advanced battery technologies are a priority for the Department of War as important enabling components for critical sectors of the defense industrial base and U.S. economy. OSC’s proposed financing would help expand domestic production capacity, strengthen vulnerable supply chains, and support continued American leadership in producing advanced batteries at scale,” David A. Lorch, OSC’s director and Senior Advisor to Deputy Secretary of War Steve Feinberg, said.
The project is intended to strengthen supply chains serving energy storage, AI, data center, defense and other U.S. industrial markets while reducing reliance on foreign sources for battery manufacturing components. The expansion of Si/C anode and battery cell manufacturing will increase U.S. production of advanced materials used in national security applications, including satellite operations, unmanned aerial systems and munitions.
“This commitment has the potential to transform the domestic battery supply chain,” Asad Akram, managing director and co-head of Critical Minerals at OSC, said. “In doing so, it would provide crucial material for a variety of applications critical to the U.S. warfighter as well as the U.S. economy writ large.”
The conditional loan commitment between OSC and Sila specifies customary additional steps the company must take to proceed toward financial close, including satisfying financial, legal, technical, diligence, and other requirements.