The Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept all-electric muscle automobile is proven at its world reveal throughout Dodge’s Speed Week at M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan, Aug. 17, 2022.
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DETROIT — Samsung SDI and automaker Stellantis plan to make investments greater than $3.2 billion in a brand new electrical car battery plant in Kokomo, Indiana.
The facility — Stellantis’ sixth battery plant introduced globally — was largely anticipated, however the location and timing are notable. The announcement Wednesday was made throughout contentious U.S. labor strikes and contract negotiations between Stellantis and the United Auto Workers union, led by UAW President Shawn Fain, who’s from Kokomo.
Battery crops have turn into a foremost problem in the labor talks, because the UAW views EV battery jobs as essential to its long-term viability. General Motors final week agreed to embrace workers at its EV battery plant in the corporate’s nationwide contract with the union, which Fain referred to as a “transformative win.”
Fain stated the union expects Stellantis and Ford Motor to observe go well with, together with battery plant staff in eventual contract agreements.
“The plan was to draw down engine and transmission crops and completely substitute them with low-wage battery jobs,” Fain stated Friday. “We had a unique plan, and our plan is profitable at GM. And we anticipate it to win at Ford and Stellantis as nicely.”
Stellantis declined to touch upon particulars of the continuing negotiations or timing of the announcement.
United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain throughout a web based broadcast updating union members on negotiations with the Detroit automakers on Oct. 6, 2023.
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EV battery crops are key to the automaker’s plans to build fashions resembling electrical variations of its Ram pickup truck and Dodge muscle car.
The new Stellantis battery plant is the second to be deliberate in Kokomo by a three way partnership between the automaker and Samsung SDI referred to as StarPlus Energy. The two crops are anticipated to create 2,800 new jobs, in accordance to the corporate.
The first facility, a $2.5 billion plant, is underneath building. It’s scheduled to start manufacturing in the course of the first quarter of 2025. The second plant is predicted to start manufacturing of battery cells in early 2027.
“Our battery ecosystem is the muse of our electrification technique and our nice companions Samsung SDI, the State of Indiana, and the City of Kokomo have created a compelling case for finding our sixth gigafactory in Kokomo,” Mark Stewart, Stellantis COO North America, stated in a statement.