General Motors Co (NYSE:GM) inches up in pre trading session on Monday as firm 0declared that it will invest $760 million in its Toledo, Ohio factory to manufacture drive units for electric trucks, making it the automaker’s first U.S. powertrain facility reconfigured for EV-related production.
The largest U.S. automaker currently manufactures GM’s six-speed, eight-speed, and 10-speed rear-wheel drive transmissions, as well as nine-speed front-wheel drive transmissions, in a variety of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac vehicles at its 2.82-million-square-foot Toledo, Ohio, transmission plant, which it has renamed Toledo Propulsion Systems.
Congress granted hefty financial incentives for manufacturers in August to convert facilities that create parts for gasoline-powered vehicles to electric ones. “Once converted, the facility will construct GM’s family of EV drive units, which convert electric power from the battery pack to mechanical motion at the wheels,” GM stated, adding that throughout GM’s EV transition, the site would also make transmission items while creating drive units.
Approximately 1,500 people are now employed at the Toledo factory. Many autoworkers are concerned about the transition to EVs and how it will affect present auto jobs.
“This investment provides long-term job security for our Toledo team and marks the next stage in our drive to an all-electric future,” said Gerald Johnson, GM executive vice president of Global Manufacturing and Sustainability.
GM said last year that it will expand its EV and autonomous car spending to $35 billion from 2020 to 2025, a 75% increase, as it plans to phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2035.
GM and LG Energy Solution announced last month that they are looking at locating a fourth U.S. battery cell production factory for their joint venture in Indiana.
GM said last week that it will invest $491 million in its metal stamping operations in Marion, Indiana, to equip the facility to create a variety of steel and aluminum stamped parts for future products, including electric cars.
