Bosses at Toyota have scaled back plans to launch wide-scale manufacturing of electric cars in the US with plans for a 2025 launch pushed back by a year amid concerns about lessening demand for EVs.
Bosses at Toyota have scaled back plans to launch wide-scale manufacturing of electric cars in the US.
The Japanese motor industry giant was aiming to start its push into the US market in the next year with a start date for production slated for late 2025 or early 2026, but it’s now been confirmed the launch has been pushed back until an unscheduled time in 2026.
Toyota spokesperson Scott Vazin said: “We’re still focused on our global [battery electric vehicle] target of 1.5M vehicles by 2026 … [We aim to introduce] five to seven [battery electric vehicles] in the US market [in the next two years].”
Toyota previously announced plans to open a car manufacturing plant in Kentucky as part of a $1.3 billion investment plan as well as another factory pinpointed for Indiana and a battery production site North Carolina, which is expected to open next year.
The news comes amid a slump in demand for electric cars which recently prompted Volvo to U-turn on its plan to only produce electric vehicles by 2030 blaming changing market conditions for the decision to scrap the target.
Jim Rowan, chief executive of Volvo, said: “We are resolute in our belief that our future is electric. However, it is clear that the transition to electrification will not be linear, and customers and markets are moving at different speeds.”
Toyota scales back electric car plans
