Envision AESC to set up 30 GWh battery manufacturing Gigafactory in US
Japanese EV battery tech firm Envision AESC has confirmed $2 billion investment into a new, state-of-the-art giga factory in the US state of Kentucky. The plant with a capacity of 30 GWh annum (expandable to 40 GWh in future) will produce battery cells and modules for 300,000 next-gen EVs of different global OEMs, the company added.
The facility planned at Bowling Green, Warren County, Kentucky is expected to commence operations in 2025. It is to be noted that Envision AESC already has a small battery manufacturing plant in Tennessee, USA, primarily catering to the needs of the Nissan brand in the region.
CEO of Envision AESC Group, Shoichi Matsumoto, said, "We are pleased to partner with Kentucky and Bowling Green as part of our next phase battery strategy to power next generation EVs in the U.S. This major investment builds on our commitment to the U.S. market, supports growth of the electrification supply chain and secures high value jobs for future generations in the region".
"This commitment takes us one step further toward our ambition to make high-performance, longer-range batteries for a diverse range of automotive manufacturers worldwide to support the EV transition", he added.
As the latest investment by Envision AESC to help scale up EV manufacturing capabilities in strategically important regions, the plant follows last year's announcements to build giga factories in Douai (France) and Sunderland (UK).
This brings the company's total planned capacity to approximately 150GWh worldwide and advances its commitment to reach 300 GWh by 2026. As with Bowling Green in Kentucky, all plants will be powered by low carbon energy and digitally enabled with smart infrastructure software to optimise the energy footprint.
As an integral part of its global strategy, Envision AESC claims to work collaboratively with businesses, supply chains, academic institutions and governments to accelerate the transition to zero emissions mobility in the coming decades.
The company has also committed to achieve net zero carbon emissions in all global operations by 2022, and carbon neutrality across the whole value supply chain by 2028.
