XTC New Energy and Orano announce the construction of their first battery cathode active material manufacturing plant in northern France
The board of directors of Neomat CAM, a joint venture owned 51% by XTC New Energy and 49% by Orano, met on March 4, 2026, and made the final investment decision to build a plant to manufacture cathode active materials (CAM) for electric vehicle batteries. The announcement was made at a press conference held today in Dunkirk, attended by Michael Liu, CEO of Neomat CAM, and Philippe Hatron, Director of Orano's Batteries Program.
This is the first facility to be built as part of the Sino-French partnership announced at the Choose France summit in May 2023. Dedicated to supplying cathode active materials, which are essential components for European gigafactories manufacturing electric vehicle batteries, the Neomat CAM facility is scheduled to begin operations in 2028.
This announcement follows public consultations conducted under the auspices of the CNDP (France’s National Commission for Public Debate), followed by a public inquiry in the summer of 2025 and the granting of a building permit for the Neomat CAM plant in October 2025.
The production facility, to be located within the Port of Dunkirk, will be established across the municipalities of Gravelines and Loon-Plage. Its nominal manufacturing capacity of 40,000 metric tons of CAM per year will enable it to supply components for nearly 500,000 electric vehicles annually.
Once the Neomat CAM plant is up and running, the partners intend to mobilize resources devoted to research and development, setting up a dedicated team and deploying specific resources to ensure that expertise is embedded locally.
Neomat CAM is the first phase of an industrial platform whose production capacity could rise to 80,000 metric tons per year, depending on market developments. In the future, this industrial platform could be developed to accommodate a plant for cathode active material precursors (P-CAM) as well as a hydrometallurgical plant for recycling manufacturing waste from gigafactories and end-of-life battery materials.
According to JIANG Long, CEO of XTC New Energy: "As international experts in cathode active materials, we are delighted with this major investment in the Dunkirk region of France, at the heart of an area undergoing strong industrial growth. Together with Orano, we are combining our technologies and know-how to build a state-of-the-art plant in Europe and serve the European battery market. I greatly appreciate the quality of our collaboration which has been developing continuously, leading to this exciting industrial project.“
Michael Liu, CEO of Neomat CAM, said: "Neomat CAM aims to play a key role in the electric vehicle value chain, by providing reliable and sustainable materials for the batteries of today and tomorrow. With more than 20 years of expertise in China, our high-quality technology, combined with continuous research and innovation, forms the foundation of this ambition. Beyond the commitment of all our employees, we would like to thank all the local, national, and European stakeholders who have believed in the vision of the Neomat project.”
Orano's Senior Executive Vice-President of Engineering, R&D, Innovation and New Activities, Guillaume Dureau, commented: "We firmly believe in the development of a European electric vehicle battery industry. Our participation in Neomat CAM and this investment decision demonstrate our commitment to contributing to the creation of a battery materials value chain in Europe. This project is fully consistent with the Orano group's purpose, centered on transforming materials for a low-carbon, resource-efficient world."
According to Philippe Hatron, Director of Orano's Batteries program and member of the Board of Directors of Neomat CAM: "In less than three years, together with our Chinese partner, XTC New Energy, we have helped lay the industrial foundations for a key ecosystem at the heart of France's Battery Valley. I would like to congratulate all of our teams who have worked to make this project an industrial reality. To continue our development, we are calling for a regulatory framework that reinforces European preference and fully supports the entire value chain, including the recycling of batteries and their strategic materials."
The project has gained significant recognition in Europe: Neomat CAM was designated a “strategic project” under the Net Zero Industry Act program in 2025 and received GITC (green industry tax credit) approval. The REC2pCAM project (Orano Batteries & Neomat PCAM) was a winner of the Innovation Fund 2024, and Orano's hydrometallurgy project was also recognized as a “strategic project” under the Critical Raw Material Act in 2025, the only French project selected in the “battery recycling” category".
This is the first facility to be built as part of the Sino-French partnership announced at the Choose France summit in May 2023. Dedicated to supplying cathode active materials, which are essential components for European gigafactories manufacturing electric vehicle batteries, the Neomat CAM facility is scheduled to begin operations in 2028.
This announcement follows public consultations conducted under the auspices of the CNDP (France’s National Commission for Public Debate), followed by a public inquiry in the summer of 2025 and the granting of a building permit for the Neomat CAM plant in October 2025.
The production facility, to be located within the Port of Dunkirk, will be established across the municipalities of Gravelines and Loon-Plage. Its nominal manufacturing capacity of 40,000 metric tons of CAM per year will enable it to supply components for nearly 500,000 electric vehicles annually.
Once the Neomat CAM plant is up and running, the partners intend to mobilize resources devoted to research and development, setting up a dedicated team and deploying specific resources to ensure that expertise is embedded locally.
Neomat CAM is the first phase of an industrial platform whose production capacity could rise to 80,000 metric tons per year, depending on market developments. In the future, this industrial platform could be developed to accommodate a plant for cathode active material precursors (P-CAM) as well as a hydrometallurgical plant for recycling manufacturing waste from gigafactories and end-of-life battery materials.
According to JIANG Long, CEO of XTC New Energy: "As international experts in cathode active materials, we are delighted with this major investment in the Dunkirk region of France, at the heart of an area undergoing strong industrial growth. Together with Orano, we are combining our technologies and know-how to build a state-of-the-art plant in Europe and serve the European battery market. I greatly appreciate the quality of our collaboration which has been developing continuously, leading to this exciting industrial project.“
Michael Liu, CEO of Neomat CAM, said: "Neomat CAM aims to play a key role in the electric vehicle value chain, by providing reliable and sustainable materials for the batteries of today and tomorrow. With more than 20 years of expertise in China, our high-quality technology, combined with continuous research and innovation, forms the foundation of this ambition. Beyond the commitment of all our employees, we would like to thank all the local, national, and European stakeholders who have believed in the vision of the Neomat project.”
Orano's Senior Executive Vice-President of Engineering, R&D, Innovation and New Activities, Guillaume Dureau, commented: "We firmly believe in the development of a European electric vehicle battery industry. Our participation in Neomat CAM and this investment decision demonstrate our commitment to contributing to the creation of a battery materials value chain in Europe. This project is fully consistent with the Orano group's purpose, centered on transforming materials for a low-carbon, resource-efficient world."
According to Philippe Hatron, Director of Orano's Batteries program and member of the Board of Directors of Neomat CAM: "In less than three years, together with our Chinese partner, XTC New Energy, we have helped lay the industrial foundations for a key ecosystem at the heart of France's Battery Valley. I would like to congratulate all of our teams who have worked to make this project an industrial reality. To continue our development, we are calling for a regulatory framework that reinforces European preference and fully supports the entire value chain, including the recycling of batteries and their strategic materials."
The project has gained significant recognition in Europe: Neomat CAM was designated a “strategic project” under the Net Zero Industry Act program in 2025 and received GITC (green industry tax credit) approval. The REC2pCAM project (Orano Batteries & Neomat PCAM) was a winner of the Innovation Fund 2024, and Orano's hydrometallurgy project was also recognized as a “strategic project” under the Critical Raw Material Act in 2025, the only French project selected in the “battery recycling” category".