Toyota to speed up electrification goals with new investment in battery production

After making a commitment late last year to sell 3.5 million battery electric vehicles (BEVs) by 2030, Toyota is putting serious money into battery production. The Japanese automaker is investing approximately $5.6 billion in its own battery development program to supply its growing EV battery demand. They also aim to increase battery production between 2024 to 2026. 

Toyota will invest $2.883 billion in the Himeji Plant of Prime Energy and Solutions Co. Ltd. while also putting in approximately $2.5 billion dollars in the new Toyota Battery Manufacturing in North Carolina, which is owned by Toyota Motor North America Inc. (90%) and Toyota Tsusho Corporation (10%). 

Toyota also intends to continue its efforts in building a supply system that can steadily meet the growing demands of battery-powered electric vehicles or BEVs in various regions. This includes supplying automotive batteries for its partners. 

The investment aims to increase the combined battery production capacity to 40 GWh. With Toyota utilizing the Toyota Production System (TPS) and building new efficient production lines, the Japanese car maker intends to further strengthen its competitiveness and invest in training key personnel in battery production and lastly, passing down the “monozukiri” manufacturing skills. 

With this, Toyota is putting more value on its overall battery development and therefore beefing up its in-house productivity. They won’t be relying too much on the schedules of outsourced partnerships which is key for them to move forward when it comes to developing more fully electric vehicles. 

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