Toyota Announces EV Push In China And U.S.

Toyota Motor Corporation is partnering with the Shanghai municipal administration to advance carbon neutrality in China. The collaboration includes establishing a new Toyota subsidiary in Shanghai's Jinshan District, dedicated to developing and producing battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and batteries.

This partnership aligns with China's goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. Toyota's efforts will concentrate on key areas such as hydrogen energy, automated driving technologies, and battery recycling and reuse.

In response to the rising demand for alternative energy vehicles in China, the giant carmaker aims to accelerate the introduction of innovative products tailored to the Chinese market.
The newly formed company will lead the development of a new Lexus-branded BEV, with manufacturing scheduled to begin in 2027. The initial manufacturing capacity is expected to be around 100,000 units per year, with approximately 1,000 new employment created during the start-up phase.

The company’s move also coincides with growing concerns in Asia about a possible trade war that may break out after President Donald Trump levied tariffs on Chinese imports, to which China responded with penalties that would go into force the following week.
Toyota is also investing $1.4 billion in a North Carolina battery factory to produce batteries for electric, hybrid, and plug-in vehicles, starting in April. This move addresses criticism of Toyota's slow adoption of electric vehicles, especially in the rapidly expanding Chinese market and growing global sustainability concerns.

Additionally, the company announced on Wednesday that its fiscal third quarter earnings increased 61% from the previous fiscal year to 2.19 trillion yen, on sales of 12.4 trillion yen, which was 3% higher than the previous year. After some production was halted due to a certification issue in Japan earlier this fiscal year, Toyota authorities reported that sales were rebounding.

The Japan automaker admitted to extensive fraudulent testing last year, which included testing airbag inflation and engine power checks improperly and using old or insufficient data in crash tests. The misconduct solely had an impact on Japanese production and had no effect on the vehicles' safety.

According to Toyota, the new business in China is a part of its efforts to meet the country's increasing demand for EVs. Toyota already has China FAW Group Co. and Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. as its longtime partners in China, and those will continue unchanged, the automaker added.