Toyota plans to spend $1.4 billion to add production of a new battery electric vehicle at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana plant in Princeton, Gov. Eric Holcomb’s office announced Thursday.
The automaker plans to add 340 jobs by the end of 2025 as a result of the expansion. The Gibson County plant—which produces the Toyota Sienna, Highlander, Grand Highlander and Lexus TX models—currently employs more than 7,500 people.
“Our team members are the heart of Toyota,” Toyota Indiana President Tim Hollander said in a news release. “We take great pride in producing quality products while providing long-term, stable employment no matter the changes in our industry. Our team is committed to delivering this new product with the same quality and performance that Toyota customers expect.”
Since 2021, Toyota has announced new investments totaling $18.6 billion for its U.S. manufacturing operations to support electrification efforts.
Toyota Indiana will create a battery-pack assembly line that will use lithium-ion batteries supplied by a $13.9 billion facility under construction in North Carolina. Batteries are expected to roll off the assembly line in North Carolina starting in 2025.
The battery packs assembled in Indiana will be used to build the all-new battery electric vehicle.
The announcement comes on the heels of a $1.3 billion investment in Toyota’s operations in Kentucky. That plant will produce a different electric vehicle, which Toyota describes as a new three-row SUV.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. is offering up to $5 million in incentive-based tax credits and up to $1 million in conditional structured performance payments. Toyota will not be eligible to claim the incentives until investments are made.
Thursday’s announcement brings Toyota’s total investment in the Indiana facility to $8 billion since 1996. Nearly $3 billion of that, including this latest investment, has come in the last four years.
Last year, the Princeton plant began production on the Lexus TX and Toyota Grand Highlander, both of which are part of Toyota’s more than $800 million investment in the plant announced in 2021.
Specific details on the new battery electric vehicle that will be produced at the plant were not provided.
By Alex Brown, Inside INdiana Business
