Toyota is developing and making electric vehicles and EV batteries in China in a new partn ership with the Shanghai government announced this week.
Toyota also said it will start producing batteries for EVs, hybrids and plug-ins at a new $14 billion facility in North Carolina, with shipping starting for North American models in April, The Associated Press reported.
According to the AP report, the moves are being made to combat the narrative that Toyota it’s fallen behind rivals like Tesla Inc. and BYD Auto Co. Toyota is setting up a company in Jinshan district in southwest Shanghai for that effort, with production of the new Lexus EVs starting in 2027, according to the report.
Initial production capacity there totals 100,000 vehicles a year, which will create about 1,000 jobs, the world’s top automaker said. The battery plant in the U.S. will create some 5,000 jobs, according to Toyota.
The new company in China is part of Toyota’s drive to meet the high demand for EVs in China, according to Toyota. Toyota already has China FAW Group Co. and Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. as its longtime partners in China, and those will continue unchanged, he said.
Toyota said it hopes to contribute to the Chinese government’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.
