General Motors has entered into a purchase agreement for a plot of land in Lordstown, Ohio, where it will build its new battery plant with Korean battery supplier LG Chem.
According to The Detroit Free Press, the 158 acre plot of land is located near the Lordstown Assembly plant, which the automaker sold to fledgling electric vehicle company Lordstown Motor Company late last year. GM owned the piece of property once before, but sold it in 2014 following its bankruptcy proceedings.
“This move gets us a step closer to making the state-of-the art plant a reality and positioning the Mahoning Valley as a major force in technology and electric vehicle manufacturing,” GM spokesman Dan Flores told The Detroit News. “GM is committed to engaging with the community as we develop this project in a responsible and sustainable manner.”
GM Lordstown plant in 2017
GM and LG Chem made a joint statement announcing the new plant in early December of last year. The site will mass-produce battery cells for GM’s future electric vehicles, including the brand’s electric Hummer pickup truck and its electric Cadillac crossover, among more. Together, the two companies will invest a total of $2.3 billion in the facility, which will be owned by a new, equally owned joint-venture company. It is expected to bring around 1,100 new jobs to the Lordstown area, which lost thousands of jobs when GM closed Lordstown Assembly last March.
In a previous statement, GM said the Lordstown battery plant will also be “extremely flexible and able to adapt to ongoing advances in technology and materials,” indicating that it will remain a major battery manufacturing hub for the company – even as battery technology advances and changes.
Chevrolet Bolt EV lithium ion battery
“With this investment, Ohio and its highly capable workforce will play a key role in our journey toward a world with zero emissions,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in December. “Combining our manufacturing expertise with LG Chem’s leading battery-cell technology will help accelerate our pursuit of an all-electric future. We look forward to collaborating with LG Chem on future cell technologies that will continue to improve the value we deliver to our customers.”
Groundbreaking for the new battery plant is expected to begin this spring. The plant should be up and running by mid-to-late 2021, as GM’s electric pickup truck is scheduled to start rolling off the assembly line at Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly that fall.
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Source: The Detroit News
Comments
Very Happy for the City of Lordstown.
I do however wonder if all the Jobs at that site will be Union jobs. Or just the GM employees.
So at least 2 years for a battery plant to be operational. Don’t think we’re gonna see any EV SUV’s or pickups until after that. GM is gonna be last to the EV party at this rate.
This is a technological party where showing up first may be fashionable but not profitable.
It matters much on price the customer pays and still make a profit.
@C8.R
Well yes and no. GM started so much earlier than say VW but they never took EV’s as serious as VW so now they will be late top the Party. VW stated they will make profits from Day one.
Tesla as will VW prove that profits are 100% attainable when you have the Scale. GM fell asleep at the wheel on that front. All i ah hopeful ofr is even if GM might be late to the Party I pray they offer top notch Products.
The Norm for EV’s will not suffice. EV’s