New 'Battery Belt' Opens Organizing Front in the South

Hyundai's first U.S. plant for manufacturing electric vehicles is under construction in Ellabell, Georgia, near Savannah. The $7.9 billion plant is one of many being built in the South as the auto industry makes the changeover. Photo: AP Photo/Russ Bynum

https://labornotes.org/2024/07/new-battery-belt-changing-south

July 31, 2024 / Ben Carroll

Towering cranes pierce the sky, contrasting with the rural surroundings. It’s an early morning in June, the air already gauzy and thick, and construction is humming at the Toyota Battery mega-site in Liberty, North Carolina.

Trucks and other heavy machines dart in and out of the complex. A line of food trucks is tucked around the corner, alongside a dozen tour buses used to move workers.

Production is slated to begin in 2025. By 2030, when the 7 million-square-foot complex is fully operational, it will have 14 production lines—10 dedicated to batteries for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electrics, and four for hybrid electric vehicles—operated by 5,100 workers. The total population of Liberty is 2,655.

Though this factory stands out for its staggering $13.9 billion price tag, it’s one of several electric vehicle (EV) plants under construction or soon to break ground across the South.

FULL story at link above.