Honda to Invest $11 Billion in Canadian EV Production
Honda Motor Co. is planning a major investment in electric vehicle (EV) production in Canada, with the goal of meeting future demand in North America. The company, along with joint venture partners, will invest $11 billion to build an EV plant and a separate EV battery plant in Ontario.
Honda already has two manufacturing plants in Ontario, employing 4,200 people. The new facilities are expected to create at least 1,000 additional jobs. The EV plant will have a production capacity of 240,000 EVs per year, while the battery plant will have a capacity of 36 GWh per year.
In addition to the EV and battery plants, Honda is also planning to build a cathode active material and precursor processing plant in partnership with POSCO Future M Co. and a separator plant in partnership with Asahi Kasei Corp.
EV production is expected to begin in 2028. This investment is part of a broader trend in the automotive industry, as manufacturers shift towards electric vehicles in response to growing concerns about emissions and climate change.
Global Shift Towards Electric Vehicles
The world's automakers are rapidly shifting towards electric vehicles, focusing on batteries and motors instead of gas engines. This shift is driven by concerns about emissions and climate change, as well as the increasing popularity of electric vehicles among consumers.
However, Japanese automakers have fallen behind rivals such as Tesla and BYD in developing EVs. This is partly because they have historically been so successful with combustion engine vehicles.
Other EV Investments
In addition to Honda's investment in Canada, Toyota recently announced that it will invest $1.4 billion in its Princeton, Indiana plant to produce a battery electric SUV. The move will create up to 340 jobs. The automaker also announced that it would invest $1.3 billion to produce a separate battery electric SUV at its Kentucky facility.