SEPTEMBERASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK9credits to consumers aimed at boosting local content in EVs and batteries.Toyota, which is the world's biggest carmaker, will also invest about 400 billion yen on plants and a the PPES joint venture with Panasonic in the western Japanese city of Himeji. The firm is aiming to begin battery production between 2024 and 2026 with an investment intended to augment battery production capacity in both the countries by up to 40 gigawatt hours (GWh). News of Toyota's spending plans comes hot on the heels of an announcement on Monday by Honda Motor and Korean battery supplier LG Energy Solution that they will build a $4.4 billion lithium-ion battery plant for EVs in the US. Battery makers are looking to increase production in the US to catch the shift toward electric vehicles as the country implements stricter regulation and tightens tax credit eligibility.The location of the plant has not been finalised, the companies said, but two people briefed on the matter confirmed reports Honda is seriously considering Ohio, where Honda`s main US factory is located. Honda and LGES are also aiming for annual production capacity of approximately 40 GWh with the batteries supplied exclusively to Honda facilities in North America to power Honda and Acura EV models. The pair are expected to establish a joint venture before building the plant, with the start of construction planned for early 2023 and mass-production by the end of 2025.Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said his administration is working with Honda and LG `to ensure that they choose Ohio for this new electric battery plant'. The sources briefed on the matter said an announcement on the location could come in weeks. The US has been pushing policies designed to bring more battery and EV manufacturing into the country. President Biden signed a $430-billion climate, healthcare and tax bill this month that will render EVs made outside North America ineligible for tax credits. White House Deputy National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi praised the Honda-LG `massive investment' that he said was catalyzed by climate and infrastructure legislation.US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the administration was bringing `back the domestic manufacturing of batteries to provide Americans with good-paying jobs that will power the EV revolution'. California announced a plan last week requiring all new vehicles sold in the state by 2035 to be either electric or plug-in electric hybrids.The two firms said a combination of strong local EV production and a timely supply of batteries would put them `in the best position to target the rapidly-growing North American EV market'. LG Energy Solution, which is mainly engaged in the development of lithium-ion battery materials and next-generation batteries, also supplies EV batteries and has signed joint-venture agreements with General Motors, Hyundai Motor Co and Stellantis.
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