Toyota plans to spend over a billion dollars to build a new U.S. factory to make batteries for gas-electric hybrid and fully electric vehicles. Alabama may be in the discussion as the home of the new facility. The plant location wasn't announced, but the company said it eventually will employ close to two thousand people and start making batteries in 2025. The battery factory is part of $3 billion dollar plan by Toyota to produce automotive batteries during the next decade. It didn't detail where the remaining $2.1 billion would be spent, but part of that likely will go for another battery factory. Alabama is being mentioned as a possible location, since it would be close to Toyota plans in Texas, Missouri, Kentucky, and Indiana. A plant in Huntsville also builds engines for Toyota vehicles.
Canadian battery recycling company Li-Cycle announced last month that it will be building a facility in west Alabama. The Alabama factory will be the company’s fourth location in North America. According to Businesswire, Li-Cycle plans to spend around $10 million on the west Alabama facility. The facility, expected to open by mid-2022, will process around 5,000 tons of battery material per year. The Li-Cycle facility will create 30 new jobs in Alabama. The
Toronto-based company reprocesses lithium-ion battery manufacturing scraps and end-of-life batteries that can be re-used by automakers. The new plant will be located near the Mercedes, which will begin producing battery-powered vehicles next year.