Taiwan’s solid-state battery (SSB) developer ProLogium Technology said Friday it plans to invest $8 billion in its first overseas gigafactory with a capacity of up to 120 gigawatt-hours.

With its first mass-production lines set to be running in early 2023 in Taiwan, the company is now looking for a suitable international site between the US and Europe. A feasibility study is currently looking at locations such as US, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and UK, Kallanish reports.

The overseas gigafactory is to be developed in three stages, with a final investment decision expected by Q1 2023. ProLogium is yet to indicate a timeframe for the project, but says that by 2030 it will create over 6,500 jobs.

Earlier this month, ProLogium’s ceo Vincent Yang and other company executives met French President Emmanuel Macron during the Choose France Business Summit in Versailles; as well as US officials and governors during the SelectUSA Summit. According to Yang, both governments expressed “full support for ProLogium to set up plants locally -- an indication of the increasing strategic importance of the next-generation battery.”

“Our first-ever overseas gigafactory serves a key strategic purpose – being close to our customers to deliver products and services in a timely manner,” he adds.

Mercedes-Benz plans to test and use ProLogium’s proprietary SSBs through a technology cooperation agreement signed earlier this year. Vietnamese EV maker VinFast is also looking into securing SSB supplies from ProLogium.

The long testing and certification process for the company’s EV solid-state batteries has started with key global OEMs, with nearly 8,000 cells of 50-60 ampere-hours.