The Japanese electronics company Panasonic announced on Thursday that it would invest $4 billion in the construction of an electric vehicle (EV) battery factory in the United States.
Panasonic estimated that the Kansas lithium-ion battery plant may add up to 4,000 new jobs as the Tesla supplier works to increase its market share.
According to Kazuo Tadanobu, president and chief executive officer of Panasonic Energy, “With the increased electrification of the automotive market, expanding battery production in the US is critical to help meet demand.”
Along with its site in Nevada, the factory will be Panasonic’s second electric vehicle battery business in the country.
After announcing two new plants in Germany and the US state of Texas earlier this year, the announcement comes as Tesla struggles to increase production.
Laura Kelly, the governor of Kansas, praised Panasonic’s choice as “transformative” for the neighborhood’s economy.
Although the decision to relocate is pending Panasonic’s board’s approval, the new factory is anticipated to be situated in De Soto, Kansas.
Rahm Emanuel, the US ambassador to Japan, hailed the move as “a vote of confidence” in the US economy and its workforce, calling Kansas “one of the largest battery production sites for the next generation of electric vehicles.”
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