Tesla to delay Cybertruck production in Austin
Austin-based Tesla will delay assembly of its electric Cybertruck vehicle at its new plant near the Austin–Bergstrom International Airport. A change in the vehicle’s features is the reason for the delay in the yet-to-open plant.
New CEO of Virginia Economic Development Partnership wants more investments in large industrial sites
Jason El Koubi, the former executive vice president at the Virginia Economic Development Partnership and now the interim president and CEO of VEDP, said in the winter quarter that the Commonwealth needs shovel ready sites to land some of the large projects announced in the South the last six months of 2021. El Koubi was referring to the electric vehicle and battery plants announced in Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina. In an article in Virginia, El Koubi was quoted as saying, “The cost of not investing in site development has become very clear and very alarming.”
Auto supplier opens in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
Dura Automotive Systems celebrated the opening of its new Muscle Shoals manufacturing facility. The $75 million plant, which will employ more than 270 full-time workers at peak production, manufactures battery enclosures for electric vehicles to be made by Mercedes-Benz.
Piston Automotive expanding Kentucky plant
Piston Automotive, a provider of automotive assemblies including electric and hybrid vehicle battery systems, will further expand its operations in Jefferson County, Ky. The $26.3 million project is expected to create 117 jobs.
One thousand more jobs available at Mazda-Toyota plant
Toyota and Mazda are looking for 1,200 more employees to help build vehicles at their new joint plant in Huntsville, Ala. After the recent rollout of Mazda’s first vehicle from the plant — the CX-50 crossover SUV — VP of production Janette Hostettler said, “The team members here have worked so hard and put so much heart and passion into the vehicle, but I still need about 1,200 more of y’all.”
EV company announces $25 million investment in Jax
New Jersey-based Cenntro Automotive will invest $25 million in its proposed 100,000-square-foot facility in Jacksonville, Fla., — its first manufacturing plant in the U.S. — to produce the company’s line of delivery and logistics trucks and vans beginning in the first quarter of 2022. The facility is expected to house a workforce of 34 employees.
Electric bus manufacturer chooses South Charleston, W.Va.
Canada-based electric bus manufacturer GreenPower Motor Company will lease/purchase a 9.5-acre manufacturing facility in South Charleston, W.Va. The company will manufacture zero-emission, all-electric school buses there. The project is expected to create up to 200 jobs by the end of the year, and employment at the facility may reach up to 900 jobs when full production is reached in 24 months.
