Akio Toyoda, Chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation.
Yoshikazu Tsuno | Gamma-rapho | Getty Images
Toyota Automotive The company said on Tuesday it would invest $1.3 billion at a factory in Kentucky to build a new all-electric three-row SUV for the U.S. market.
The car is expected to go into production by the end of 2025 to early 2026, a company spokesman said. This is part of the Japanese automaker’s previously announced plan to invest $35 billion in battery electric vehicles (BEVs) by 2030.
A company spokesman declined to provide further details about the upcoming vehicle, which is likely to compete with existing vehicles such as the Rivian R1S and Kia EV9.
The news comes as consumer adoption of electric vehicles has been slower than many expected, leading some automakers to delay or cut investment plans for all-electric vehicles.
Toyota, the world’s largest automaker and one of the most prominent, said that while electric vehicles are the solution to achieving carbon neutrality, they are not the only solution. The automaker continues to invest in other technologies such as hybrids, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen fuel cells.
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