Honda’s U.S. automotive division has announced two major investments in Ohio, including $700 million to re-tool several of its assembly and powertrain plants for production of electric vehicles and $3.5 billion with LG Energy Solutions (LGES) to launch a joint venture facility to produce the battery modules to power them.
The deal, pending final government approvals, will see the battery plant built in Ohio's Fayette County, about 40 miles southwest of Columbus.
"This is a very challenging time for our entire industry, but also a very exciting time as Honda invests in full electric vehicle production in the Buckeye State," said Bob Nelson, executive vice-president of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "Honda has built hybrid-electric vehicles in Ohio for a number of years, and the experience and expertise of our associates in manufacturing, product development, and purchasing will serve as an important foundation as we transition to the electrified future."
Honda says the investment will transform its Marysville Auto Plant (MAP), East Liberty Auto Plant (ELP) and Anna Engine Plant (AEP) and create more than 300 new jobs. Production and sales of Honda EVs in North America is planned for 2026 and will be based on based on Honda’s e:Architecture EV platform, which combines both hardware and software.
Honda’s Anna Engine Plant (AEP) in Anna, Ohio. Image Source: American Honda Motor Co., Inc
The re-tooling will equip the AEP plant to produce the battery case, which will be combined with the battery modules from the JV plant on a sub-assembly line at the MAP facility, with the complete battery unit then installed in EVs built at both MAP and ELP.
Honda plans to achieve carbon neutrality for all products and corporate activities by 2050, and for battery-electric and fuel cell electric vehicles to make up 100 percent of its North American vehicle sales by 2040.
Honda produced and sold more than 100,000 electrified vehicles in the U.S. in 2021, including the Accord Hybrid, CR-V Hybrid and Insight hybrid sedan.
EV Battery Joint Venture
Honda says the JV battery production facility will employ 2,200 people to produce pouch-type batteries. Before this investment, Honda had a deal to buy Ultium batteries from GM.
"LG Energy Solution's innovative battery technologies will not only power Honda's brand-new EV models but support Ohio's green economy," said Dong-Myung Kim, Executive Vice President of Advanced Automotive Battery Division at LG Energy Solution, in a statement. He added that this joint venture is part of LGES’ strategy to focus on North America, the fastest growing EV market. LGES plans to further expand its production capacity in the region, as well as reinforce its local supply chain for key critical minerals.
Pending regulatory approvals, the joint venture between Honda and LGES will be start in 2022, with construction starting in early 2023 and completion planned for the end of 2024. This will enable the start of mass production of battery modules using advanced pouch-type, Li-ion cells by the end of 2025, with an annual production capacity of approximately 40GWh.
"Honda is proud of our history in Ohio, where our U.S. manufacturing operations began more than four decades ago. Now, as we expand Honda's partnership with Ohio, we are investing in a workforce that will create the power source for our future Honda and Acura electric vehicles," said Nelson.