March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Mercedes-Benz Opens Alabama Battery Plant
Mercedes-Benz has opened its Bibb County electric vehicle battery plant ahead of the automaker’s planned start of production for all-electric SUVs. The company also marked the occasion by announcing another battery plant in the United States and setting an ambitious goal to go all-electric by 2030, as market conditions allow. It is the culmination of a period of rapid expansion for Mercedes in west Alabama, after the automaker committed in 2017 to pump $1 billion into its operations. Mercedes-Benz has invested more than $7 billion in its Alabama operations since the mid-90s and employs around 4,500 people. An estimated 11,000 jobs are also connected through supply chains and service providers. The factory has produced roughly four million vehicles since 1997, with about 260,000 SUVs hitting the roads since last year.
