Honda, GS Yuasa to jointly build plant for EV batteries in Japan

Honda Motor Co and battery maker GS Yuasa Corp will jointly invest 434 billion yen in building a factory in Japan to produce lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.

A government aid of up to 158.7 billion yen aimed at promoting battery production in Japan will be provided to the envisioned plant.

The new plant will start operating in April 2027 and ramp up production toward 2030,

Last week, the Japanese carmaker announced measures to accelerate its EV business expansion, including a tie-up with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. to strengthen its chip procurement.

Honda also said it will launch four EV models in Japan by 2026, including a compact sport utility vehicle and two types of mini-vehicles modeled after the N-VAN and the N-ONE.