Toyota to Invest $5.3 Billion to Make EV Batteries

Toyota Motor Corporation has set aside 730 billion yen ($5.27 billion) for the Japanese and the US market to produce batteries for electric vehicles (EVs).

The company plans to operationalize its new facilities between 2024 and 2026, with a total battery production capacity of up to 40 gigawatt-hours. It stated:

This investment is aimed at enabling Toyota to flexibly meet the needs of its various customers in all countries and regions by offering multiple powertrains and providing as many options as possible.

Despite its reluctance, Toyota has taken this step to expedite EV development in Japan and United States. The latter offers massive tax exemptions to EV maker which Toyota seeks to avail.

Toyota’s New EV

The images of Toyota’s new electric sedan have sparked excitement among enthusiasts. Dubbed bZ3, the new sedan competes with Tesla Model 3 and Changan Shenlan SL03. It is the result of Toyota’s joint venture (JV) with FAW Group and BYD. The company’s first EV, the bZ4X, was a product of its collaboration with GAC Motor.

Toyota bZ3 features BYD’s Blade LFP battery pack. It has one rear-axle mounted electric motor — those in the lower trim produce 183 horsepower (hp) while the higher trim makes 244 hp.

It will also feature modern amenities such as lane keeping assistant, collision warning and avoidance feature, adaptive cruise control, autonomous braking, automatic high beam, road sign assist, etc.

Although Toyota is yet to reveal bZ3’s launch date, speculations suggest that the EV will debut in Q4, 2022.