Toyota’s new CEO visits Raleigh to celebrate the Japanese automaker’s battery plant
Toyota CEO Koji Sato visited the North Carolina General Assembly Thursday to celebrate the Japanese automaker’s ongoing construction of a battery manufacturing plant at the Greensboro-Randolph Megasite.
Sato was met with a standing ovation on the House floor as a group of lawmakers escorted him into the chamber. While at the General Assembly, Sato met with House Speaker Tim Moore, a Kings Mountain Republican; Senate leader Phil Berger, an Eden Republican; Senate Democratic leader Dan Blue, of Raleigh; and Republican state Sens. Amy Galey and David Craven, who represent the new plant’s district.
Sato met earlier in the day with Gov. Roy Cooper at the Executive Mansion.
“With their new EV battery plant, Toyota is creating good-paying jobs in the Triad while helping North Carolina lead the way to a clean energy future,” Cooper said on Twitter.
Sato became president of the Toyota Motor Corporation in April, having worked at the company since 1992. He was previously the President of Lexus International and the GAZOO Racing Company, both of which are owned by Toyota.
Toyota first announced in December 2021 that it was building the battery manufacturing plant about an hour’s drive outside the Triangle, its first in North America and one of the largest manufacturing investments in state history. Originally, it was set to create at least 1,750 jobs with a total investment of $1.29 billion.
“It’s tremendous that Toyota has selected North Carolina for such an important part of its electric vehicle future, creating good paying jobs and moving us toward a healthier environment,” Cooper said at the time. “It’s clear the world is beginning to embrace a clean energy future and today’s decision puts North Carolina front and center.”
In August 2022, the Japanese carmaker announced a major expansion of the Randolph County plant, saying it would invest an additional $2.5 billion, bringing the total investment to $3.8 billion. It also said it would add another 350 jobs, for a total of 2,100.
Earlier this month, Toyota announced another expansion of the plant, directing an additional $2.1 billion to the plant to bring the total commitment to $5.9 billion. The projected employment target remained at 2,100 jobs.
“Toyota’s continued commitment in North Carolina confirms our status as a manufacturing powerhouse,” Berger said at the time.
The site is expected to begin manufacturing lithium-ion batteries in 2025, including batteries for both hybrid and fully electric vehicles.
Combined with state and local incentives, Toyota is set to receive around $439 million in payroll tax breaks if it meets its investment and job targets by 2029. In July 2022, another $225 million in incentives were added, but they are contingent on the creation of 4,500 jobs and a $4.7 billion investment in the state by 2035. In February 2023, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality issued a change in its air quality permit to allow further expansion of the plant, from the previously announced six production lines to seven.
In 2018, North Carolina was the runner-up to Alabama for a Toyota-Mazda joint manufacturing operation after promising $1.6 billion in financial incentives. The venture would have brought 4,000 jobs to North Carolina.
