Toyota Motor Corporation will invest up to 730 billion yen (approximately US $5.6 billion) in Japan and the U.S. to supply automotive batteries for battery-electric vehicles (BEVs). The manufacturer aims to begin battery production between 2024 and 2026.

The investment will enable the automaker to increase its combined battery production capacity in Japan and the U.S. by up to 40 GWh, using its well-known production system to create more efficient production lines.

Some 400 billion yen (US $2.8 billion) will be invested the Himeji Plant of Prime Planet Energy & Solutions Co., Ltd. in Japan and in Toyota plants and property. In the U.S., approximately 325 billion yen (some $2.5 billion) will help fund increased production at Toyota’s battery manufacturing plant in North Carolina.

Expected to begin production in 2025, the Greensboro, North Carolina facility’s four production lines will each be capable of delivering enough lithium-ion batteries for 200,000 vehicles―with planned expansion to least six production lines for a combined total of up to 1.2 million vehicles per year.