Toyota investing $13.5B to establish electric vehicle battery tech biz

Toyota revealed on Tuesday, Sept. 7, that it will be developing batteries for electric vehicles, and for this business, it will be investing around $13.5 billion. The Japanese automaker is hoping it will be able to set up the new venture by 2030.

According to Reuters, Toyota Motor is entering this business in an effort to take the lead in major automotive technology over the course of the next decade. The company created the hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles and it is now making its moves to introduce its first all-electric vehicle models by next year.

It was said that the Aichi, Japan headquartered carmaker has always been considered a leader in EV battery development and it is now aiming to cut the cost of batteries it produces by as much as 30% or even more. It is planning to make this possible through working on the production materials and how the cells are formed.

"For the vehicle, we aim to improve power consumption, which is an indicator of the amount of electricity used per kilometer by 30%, starting with the Toyota bZ4X," Masahiko Maeda, Toyota’s chief technology officer, said in a meeting where he mentioned the firm’s upcoming SUV model.

Based on the report, if Toyota could successfully develop electric vehicle batteries for less, it may possibly replace the commonly used lithium-ion batteries. Thus, this project is being seen as a game-changer for EV makers if it will succeed. This type is also predicted to be faster to charge and less prone to fire.

Maeda said that at this point, they are still looking for the best materials that will help them to build a more efficient battery that will also cost less compared to the traditional ones. Toyota is hoping to start manufacturing EV batteries in the mid-2020s.

In any case, for its plan, Toyota Motor is reportedly spending $9 billion to build the plants for battery production. It is also preparing to sell at least two million car units per year by the end of the decade.

Finally, The Wall Street Journal reported that Toyota may be late in joining the race to make the best batteries for the gasless vehicles of the future. It may also be a little slower in its bid to make and sell battery-powered cars but it is still on the right track as the other automakers are still stuck in the stage of working to make their own EVs and suitable batteries.