President Joe Biden’s administration canceled a $200 million grant it previously planned to award to a Chinese Communist Party-linked lithium-ion battery maker after Republican lawmakers criticized the deal.
Last year, Biden’s Department of Energy (DOE) selected Microvast to receive a $200 million federal grant from a fund created under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. Those funds were intended to help America become less reliant on China for critical supplies like lithium-ion batteries.
Microvast was one of 20 companies chosen, despite maintaining a “substantial portion” of its operations in China.
As Breitbart News reported:
Microvast is owned by holdings company Microvast Holdings Inc. In a December 14, 2021, filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Microvast Holdings Inc. stated, “A substantial portion of our facilities are currently located in the People’s Republic of China, which we refer to as the ‘PRC’ or ‘China,’” as Breitbart News previously reported.
Republican lawmakers in February wrote a letter to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding answers about why the Biden Administration selected Microvast to receive funds that were intended to help Americans.
“If the goal of this funding is to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign entities for critical minerals, why would DOE award funding to a company with obvious ties to the CCP?” The Republican lawmakers asked Granholm on February 7.
Later that month, Biden’s administration announced the $200 million grant was under review.
On Monday, administration officials announced it canceled plans for Microvast’s grant:
As responsible stewards of American taxpayer dollars, the Department of Energy maintains a rigorous review process prior to the release of any awarded funds, and it is not uncommon for entities selected to participate in award negotiations under a DOE competitive funding opportunity to not ultimately receive an award.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said it “firmly opposes” the decision, according to the state-controlled Global Times.
In response to the #US' withdrawal of a $200 million grant to Chinese-linked, Texas-based firm Microvast, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that, while this business decision is the US' own internal matter, China firmly opposes the US making an issue out of #China… pic.twitter.com/HMNXxScDf4
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) May 23, 2023
However, Republican lawmakers praised the Biden Administration’s decision to cancel the grant.
House Science, Space, and Technology Committee chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) was “pleased” with the decision, calling it a “win for taxpayers and American businesses,” but noted he was “frustrated that it took the Department six months and multiple letters from our Committee to come to such an obvious conclusion.”
“These funds are intended to strengthen America’s battery production and supply chain, not to tighten China’s stranglehold on these supplies,” Lucas added.
Senate Energy Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso (R-WY) called on the administration to “immediately reject other applicants with similar ties.”
“I’m stunned it took the Biden Administration this long to admit the obvious: no company beholden to Communist China should be considered for U.S. government grants or loans,” Barrasso said. “The administration should immediately reject other applicants with similar ties. It should also overhaul its grant making process and conduct due diligence before issuing press releases.”
Rep. Brandon Williams (R-NY) praised the move as a “MAJOR win for our hardworking taxpayers.”
I stood with my colleagues against @ENERGY awarding Microvast $200M in grant funding — that’s now canceled.
This is a MAJOR win for our hardworking taxpayers. https://t.co/ckFxVO2iJh pic.twitter.com/dS8uVINOWj
— Rep. Brandon Williams (@RepWilliams) May 23, 2023
Still, House Science Republican spokesperson Heather Vaughan said House Republicans would demand more answers from Biden.
“I don’t have specifics on why the decision was made — what part of the internal review process [Microvast] failed, for instance,” Vaughan said in an email, according to Politico. “We have some follow up questions, among them — will that money go to another company? Will the rest of the previously-announced companies all get their grants still?”
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.
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