Initially, the planned investment for the US battery plant by Toyota was $1.9 billion. Now the automaker plans to boost the investment to $3.8 billion as the demand for electric vehicles from consumers is increasing. Though Prime Planet Energy & Solutions (PPES) joint venture with Toyota and battery maker Panasonic as a partner in Liberty, North Carolina the manufacturing is set to happen.
The Liberty plant is slated to open in 2025. PPES will provide expertise in battery-making technology and equipment, Bafunno said in an interview. Panasonic also has a joint battery-making venture with Tesla in Nevada and recently announced plans to build a $4 billion plant in Kansas that is expected to supply Tesla and other automakers.
When Toyota announced the initial $1.29 billion investment last fall, North Carolina said the state would boost reimbursement to Toyota by $315 million if the company’s investment topped $3 billion. Toyota now plans to add two production lines dedicated to making batteries for fully electric vehicles at the Liberty plant, in addition to the four lines initially planned to make smaller batteries for hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, Bafunno said. He declined to provide the plant’s planned production capacity.
Battery making
Initially, Bafunno added, the plant will make lithium-ion batteries using relatively conventional electrode technology – a mixture of nickel, cobalt, and manganese for the cathode and graphite for the anode. But newer technologies, including solid state electrolytes, could be introduced over time.
“This technology is going to evolve quickly,” Bafunno said. The higher investment figure for the Liberty plant follows the recent passage of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, which provides incentives for manufacturers and tax credits to consumers aimed at boosting local content in EVs and batteries.
Automakers have staged a land grab across the country this month, announcing multibillion-dollar battery projects slated to begin bearing fruit by the middle of the decade. The cadence of declarations has accelerated since Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which provides incentives and tax credits for EV manufacturers. On Monday, Honda announced a $4.4 billion joint venture with LG Energy Solutions to make batteries for its North American EVs. The company didn’t say where the factory will be located, but analysts think it will be near Honda’s North American headquarters in Ohio or a state such as Alabama offering attractive incentives to locate there. Possibly, other battery makers and EV makers are going to increase their investments and EV plans for the coming years.
