Toyota to make $2.1 billion additional investment in the US
Japanese automaker Toyota is expanding its investments in industries that support the transition to electric vehicles. The company has decided to invest an additional $2.1 billion for a new battery factory in North Carolina. The company’s additional investment decision brings the factory’s total investment amount to $5.9 billion. HANDE BERKTAN Japanese automotive giant Toyota has decided to invest an additional $2.1 billion for a new battery factory to be established in North Carolina. The company’s additional investment decision brings the factory’s total investment amount to $5.9 billion. This decision is a sign that the automaker is trying to catch up with an industry that has embraced the transition to electric vehicles. The Japanese automaker announced that it will produce its first US-made electric SUV at its Kentucky factory starting in 2025. The electric SUVs will use batteries supplied by Toyota’s North Carolina factory. It aims to sell 1.5 million electric cars in three years The company initially lagged behind other automakers in announcing new electric vehicle models. However, earlier this year, Toyota announced that it planned to sell 1.5 million electric cars annually by 2026. The battery factory in North Carolina is part of the company’s renewed commitment to electrification, and it’s not just a facility for electric vehicles. Of the six production lines planned to be operational when production begins in 2025, only two will be dedicated to fully electric vehicles. The other four will be for hybrids. Toyota has previously said it could produce enough batteries for 1.2 million vehicles per year. The new investment decision for a battery factory in the US shows that the US government’s incentives to increase battery production nationally are working. Some of the laws passed in the US in August 2022 specifically include incentives for electric vehicle technologies and battery production. As a result of the incentives, domestic and foreign automakers Ford, General Motors, BMW and Hyundai have made a series of investment commitments to get production up and running.