The Windsor area has landed another key piece in the supply chain puzzle of establishing a domestic Canadian electric vehicle manufacturing sector.
The Korean battery supply and logistics firm SERVEONE is setting up its first Canadian subsidiary in Tecumseh’s Oldcastle industrial area.
There will be 25 jobs created initially at the $15-million, 50,000-square-foot warehousing facility with more hiring planned as the NextStar Energy battery plant ramps up production in 2025.
“We look forward to the future of our business in Windsor-Essex,” SERVEONE Canada president and business director Jaden Lee said in a statement.
“SERVEONE Canada is committed to optimizing procurement costs, improving procurement efficiency, and ensuring stability for our clients. We also aim to create business opportunities and foster collaboration with key partners in Windsor-Essex.”
The international company serves as a one-stop shop for battery manufacturers in supplying, sourcing, offering services and producing the materials and components required for that process.
SERVEONE has over 1,500 employees serving 2,170 clients spread over six countries. It had sales of $6 billion in the last fiscal year.
“They have a huge client list,” said Joe Goncalves, Invest WindsorEssex interim CEO and vice-president Investment Attraction and Strategic Initiatives.
“That’s why this is so important. They looked at a number of places, but we’re in a great strategic location for them. It reduces the cost of logistics for them.
“They’ll supply NextStar; Honda in Alliston is already a customer; Volkswagen when its plant is built; (General Motors/LG Energy Solutions) Ultium Cells battery production; and some other plants in Michigan and Ohio.”
Goncalves said the SERVEONE facility is currently going through dry runs in preparation for the gradual ramping-up of the NextStar plant. He added SERVEONE is a unique addition to the local supply chain.
“There’s no company here that does all that they do,” Goncalves said. “They specialize in serving the battery manufacturing sector.
“NextStar and other battery manufacturers don’t want to be ordering things from 15 different suppliers. They can order what they need from SERVEONE because it’s a one-stop shop.”
Goncalves said SERVEONE’s presence will provide new opportunities for local firms. The company will serve as a connector to the wider battery sector.
“They’re going to work with local firms to source as much as they can because that reduces costs,” said Goncalves. SERVEONE used a local construction firm to build its facility, he said, and “they’re looking for local suppliers.
“Local companies can work through them and get access to NextStar, Honda and these other big manufacturers that they’d never get access to on their own.”
Invest WindsorEssex officials first began recruiting SERVEONE in late 2022. The courtship included travelling to Poland to meet with SERVEONE officials at the company’s Polish operations that serve LG Energy Solution’s massive battery factory in that country.
Goncalves said the addition of this new piece to the supply chain puzzle is merely the latest, not the last.
He noted the coming months will see several more announcements that will produce a significant number of direct jobs, major investment in new plants, secure some unique employers in Canada and create a substantial number of local construction and spinoff jobs.
“This was all planned out (years ago) as part of our strategy to get the first piece — the battery plant,” Goncalves said. “None of this happens without NextStar.
“We identified early on the key supply chain companies for a battery manufacturer who we felt were a good fit with Essex County’s assets and we’ve gone after them.
“We’re executing our plan; it’s not happening in a vacuum. We’re becoming a regional cluster for battery manufacturing, research and development and supply chain companies.
“We’re a leader as a clean-tech hub.”