- Volkswagen officially selected St. Thomas, Ontario, as its first North American EV battery cell plant home after revealing its rugged electric SUV and pickup line.
- VW established PowerCo, a 100% owned subsidiary, in July 2022 to handle the automaker’s battery operations.
On Monday, Volkswagen officially selected St. Thomas, Ontario, as its first North American EV battery cell plant home after revealing its rugged electric SUV and pickup line. Scout will build EVs in South Carolina. The initiatives are part of the VW Group’s broader North American EV strategy. Shortly after the Inflation Reduction Act was passed in the US last August, VW was among several global automakers looking to build and assemble EVs in the US to take advantage of the new tax credits.
Volkswagen joined fellow German automaker Mercedes-Benz in signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to secure vital resources such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt for EV battery cells in the raw-material-rich nation.
The company said it would begin accelerating manufacturing through its PowerCo business in the US with “reliable and sustainable supply chains.” VW established PowerCo, a 100% owned subsidiary, in July 2022 to handle the automaker’s battery operations. Powerco, through VW, plans to open six EV battery cell plants with 240 GWh combined capacity by 2030.
According to VW’s press release Monday, Ontario offers the ideal conditions for its first PowerCo battery cell plant outside of Europe, including abundant raw materials and access to clean energy. The company says that the factory will equip VW Group EVs with sustainable unified cells and that production is expected to begin in 2027. The selection comes shortly after VW selected South Carolina to build its Scout brand rugged SUV and pickup EVs.
Volkswagen expects to produce over 200,000 Scout vehicles, with production slated to begin in 2026 (and we may also see Audi EVs produced at the site).