Novi, Michigan-based Our Next Energy raised $300M in Series B funding led by Fifth Wall and Franklin Templeton.  Incoming funds will be used to build the lithium-iron-phosphate battery gigafactory. The firm secured a $220M grant from the state of Michigan, which it aims to use to buy equipment for the plant. The Series B round also includes a $62.5M convertible note that was issued last year. The total construction cost for the gigafactory is estimated to be $1.6B.  The factory will reach its peak production capacity of 20 gigawatt-hours by 2027, although production at the factory is expected to start in 2024.  Our Next Energy received a $1.2B post-money valuation at the funding round.  Temasek, Coatue, Riverstone Holdings, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and BMW i Ventures participated in the funding round.  To date, the firm has raised $390M in funding, which includes a $12M Series A round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures in October 2021 and a $65M Series A1 round led by BMW i Ventures in March 2022.