Gotion Inc. and Richardson Electronics have announced an Illinois-based technology partnership to build battery energy storage systems for the U.S. commercial, industrial, and utility markets. The deal pairs Gotion's battery technology and Manteno manufacturing hub with Richardson's engineering, commercialization, and power-market sales network. The timing is the real story. Chinese-linked clean energy manufacturers are facing a harder U.S. tax-credit environment under Foreign Entity of Concern rules, while buyers still want domestic assembly, reliable supply, and lower-cost LFP systems. Gotion and Richardson are trying to thread that needle from two Illinois facilities. AI-generated image The partnership centers on U.S.-made BESS products assembled in Illinois. Two Products, One Local Supply Chain Claim Richardson said the companies will launch two battery storage platforms. The first is a 760 kWh system aimed at commercial and industrial customers that need demand-charge management, resilience, solar pairing, or backup power. The second is a 5 MWh system for utility-scale projects, designed to scale into plants measured in hundreds of megawatts. Gotion will provide the battery technology produced at its manufacturing hub in Manteno, Illinois. Richardson, based in La Fox, Illinois, will support commercialization, engineering integration, and go-to-market strategy. That division of labor matters because the U.S. BESS market is no longer just a cell procurement contest. Buyers want bankable systems, grid integration help, service support, fire-safety documentation, and warranty structures that can survive a long project-finance review. Richardson had already been expanding its La Fox site into battery storage activity, including an $8.5 million capital investment disclosed last year. Gotion's Manteno site was first announced in 2023 as a $2 billion Illinois gigafactory plan. The new partnership puts both local footprints into a clearer commercial package: one company brings battery manufacturing scale, the other brings U.S. electronics, power management, and customer-channel experience. What Was Announced Gotion and Richardson are launching Illinois-made BESS products in two sizes: a 760 kWh C&I system and a 5 MWh utility-scale platform. The companies say the systems are aimed at grid resilience, power cost management, and large-scale storage deployment. Why a 760 kWh System Matters Grid-scale batteries get most of the attention, but the smaller product may be just as important. A 760 kWh system sits in the range that can serve factories, warehouses, campuses, and municipal facilities without requiring the same procurement process as a utility project. These customers are being hit by higher power bills, interconnection delays, and reliability concerns, but many do not need a full multi-container installation. AI-generated image C&I storage is becoming a practical tool for factories, campuses, and commercial facilities facing higher peak power costs. Illinois may give that product a local policy tailwind. Richardson's announcement points to the state's Climate Resilience and Grid Advancement program, which can offer rebates for standalone battery storage. Incentives like that can change project math for customers that want batteries but cannot justify them on demand-charge savings alone. The C&I market also gives Gotion and Richardson a way to build U.S. operating references before competing for the largest utility procurements. A portfolio of smaller systems can prove installation quality, thermal management, controls, and service response. That evidence is valuable in a market where fire risk, warranty risk, and supplier durability are now part of every serious buying decision. 760 kWh C&I Product 5 MWh Utility Product 2 Illinois Hubs $8.5M Richardson BESS Expansion The Utility-Scale Test The 5 MWh system puts the partnership into the main current of U.S. storage procurement. Five-megawatt-hour containers have become a common building block for four-hour storage projects, solar-plus-storage plants, data center support, and grid capacity additions. Developers like the format because it can be repeated across large sites, reducing design complexity and installation labor. AI-generated image The 5 MWh format targets utility projects that can scale from a few containers to hundreds of megawatts. Competing here will be harder. The U.S. utility market is crowded with Tesla, Fluence, Wärtsilä, Sungrow, Hithium, CATL-linked supply chains, and a long list of integrators trying to offer lower prices or more domestic content. A new system has to clear independent engineering review, fire-code requirements, performance guarantees, and bankability checks before it can win the largest orders. Gotion's battery experience gives the partnership credibility, but it also brings the policy question that shadows the whole announcement. Foreign Entity of Concern rules are now active across several clean-energy tax credits. They can affect projects that rely on technology, ownership, licensing, or supply chains connected to covered foreign entities. Energy-Storage.news noted that other Chinese clean-energy manufacturers have begun selling down stakes in U.S. assets as companies try to adapt to the rules. The Policy Pressure Points • Domestic assembly: Buyers want shorter supply chains and clearer U.S. manufacturing claims. • FEOC rules: Chinese ownership or technology links can affect tax-credit eligibility. • Project finance: Lenders need confidence that credits, warranties, and supply obligations will hold. • Cost pressure: Imported systems remain hard to beat on price, especially for large procurements. The Manufacturing Politics Are Getting Messier The announcement shows how complicated U.S. battery localization has become. Washington wants domestic battery manufacturing, but the global battery industry is still heavily tied to Chinese technology, equipment, materials, and companies. Gotion's U.S. arm is trying to build local capacity while navigating the same scrutiny that affects other China-linked suppliers. AI-generated image System integration, testing, and service support are becoming as important as cell sourcing in U.S. storage procurement. That creates a practical tension for project owners. If they avoid every Chinese-linked technology source, costs can rise and supply options narrow. If they ignore FEOC exposure, projects may lose tax-credit value or face financing delays. The result is a procurement market that asks suppliers to prove not only product performance, but also ownership structure, licensing terms, and supply-chain traceability. Richardson may help on that front because it gives the partnership a U.S. engineering and commercialization layer with a long operating history. That does not erase the policy risk, but it can make the offering easier for domestic customers to evaluate. The companies will still need to show exactly how the systems qualify for incentives and how much of the value chain is truly local. The broader signal is clear: U.S. storage demand is strong enough that companies are still trying to localize despite policy friction. Data centers, manufacturers, utilities, and municipalities need batteries faster than the domestic supply chain can be rebuilt from scratch. Partnerships like Gotion and Richardson are one answer, even if they come with political and financing complexity. What to Watch Next The first test will be customer traction. A few announced deployments would show whether buyers see the Illinois-made claim as valuable enough to offset any FEOC diligence burden. The second test will be documentation. If the companies can provide clear technical specs, certifications, fire testing, warranty terms, and incentive guidance, the systems will have a cleaner path into project pipelines. The third test is whether Gotion's U.S. structure changes. Energy-Storage.news suggested the Richardson partnership may not be the last anno