General Motors and South Korean joint-venture partner LG Energy Solution on Friday said they are set to build a second U.S. battery cell manufacturing plant, unveiling plans for a $2.3 billion factory in Spring Hill, Tennessee.
The planned 2.8 million-square-foot plant, set to start operating by 2023, will hire 1,300 people and will have a production capacity of about 35 gigawatt-hours, same as the companies’ Ultium Cells joint-venture plant located in Lordstown, Ohio, as they move to respond to the increasing demand in the electric vehicle market. The plant’s capacity would enable it to supply battery packs for over 500,000 electric vehicles annually.
“The addition of our second all-new Ultium battery cell plant in the U.S. with our joint venture partner LG Energy Solution is another major step in our transition to an all-electric future,” GM CEO Mary Barra said.
The United Auto Workers on Friday called on GM to make sure that the new plant is staffed with union-represented workers, which GM officials have said would be figured out by the employees.
LG Chem said in a regulatory filing that its LG Energy Solution unit is going to invest $933.5 million in the plant between 2021 and 2023.
