Toyota Motor Company of Japan will build a lithium-ion battery production plant for electric vehicles in North Carolina, USA. This is the first time Toyota has built a battery production plant in the United States.
According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun and others on the 7th, Toyota announced that it has decided to invest a total of $1.29 billion in North Carolina to build a lithium-ion battery plant. Its goal is to start production in 2025 with the ability to produce about 800,000 lithium-ion batteries for hybrid vehicles. It plans to raise its production capacity to 1.2 million units in the future.
Toyota explained, “We decided in consideration of the availability of renewable energy, transportation, and local government support systems.” The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said, “There is no Toyota’s production base in this area, but it is close to Tennessee and Kentucky, where finished car factories are located, and West Virginia, where parts factories are located.”
In addition, North Carolina and local governments have also decided to provide a total of $435 million worth of incentives to attract Toyota battery plants. The factory’s new employment effect is expected to reach 1,750 people.
Toyota earlier said it would invest a total of $3.4 billion in automobile battery production in the U.S. over the next 10 years. The new plant was also scheduled to be announced later this year as part of the plan. The remaining $2.1 billion in use has not been specifically identified.
