U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, introduced a bill on Thursday to block subsidies to Chinese battery companies.
If enacted, Ford’s new electric vehicle battery plant that licenses a Chinese battery maker’s technology will not qualify for the EV tax credits appropriated in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
In addition to disqualifying a U.S. company that “relies on technology via a licensing agreement with a foreign entity of concern” for the IRA tax credits, Rubio’s bill includes other categories, such as an American company under the substantial influence of a foreign entity of concern, 20 percent or more owned by a foreign entity of concern, or a joint venture with at least one partner that is considered a foreign entity of concern….