JOPLIN (AP) – EaglePicher Technologies plans to expand its plant and hire more employees in Joplin after receiving a $22 million federal contract.

The company will use the grant to produce new lithium-ion batteries. Company officials said Tuesday that a 100,000-square-foot addition will be added to its existing plant and about 130 people eventually will work there.

EaglePicher executive Dwayne Friend says the company won the competition for the contract because it has the advanced lithium-ion technology needed for the job.

The Joplin Globe reports the U.S. government currently relies on lithium-ion cells that are produced in other countries. The cells are a key element in energy-dependent weapons.

Friend said the new addition will feature state-of-the-art equipment and production areas for large-scale manufacturing required by the contract.