General Motors Co and LG Energy Solution Ltd will add a US$275 million investment in the Tennessee joint venture’s battery cell plant to increase production by more than 40 percent.
The additional investment in Spring Hill’s Ultium Cells plant will increase battery output from an annual capacity of 35 gigawatt-hours to 50 GWh, when the plant is operational in late 2023. It is one of at least four joint US battery plants planned to supply GM electric vehicles as the manufacturer the largest US automaker increased its production.
This additional investment follows the US$2.3 billion announced in April 2021 and will add another 400 jobs. The factory will employ 1,700 workers when fully operational.
The first Ultium joint venture plant in Warren, Ohio started production in August. Workers at the $2.3 billion Ohio plant will choose whether to unionize after the United Auto Workers (UAW) filed a petition to represent about 900 workers.
GM and LG Energy Solutions are also considering the Indiana location for a fourth US battery plant that is expected to cost around US$2.4 billion. They are also building a US$2.6 billion battery cell factory in Lansing, Michigan, which will open in 2024.
