ALABAMA

Mercedes to build electric SUVs at Alabama plant starting in 2022
In the winter quarter, Mercedes-Benz officials announced the German automaker will begin assembly of electric SUVs in 2022. Mercedes announced it will launch six electric versions of its vehicles, including the EQE SUV and EQS SUV, to be assembled at its Vance, Ala., plant. Batteries made in Bibb County, Ala., will be used on those electric SUVs.

German company that serves the auto industry locates Alabama plant
Heiche Surface Technologies, a German manufacturer of advanced metal coatings used in the automotive industry, is setting up a new facility in Jasper, Ala. The company will occupy a speculative building in the Jasper Industrial Park. The deal will create 73 jobs.

Auto supplier Mobis bringing 120 jobs to Birmingham area
Auto supplier Mobis Alabama announced it is expanding into the Birmingham metro area with a $15.8 million new facility that is expected to support 120 jobs. The company, a subsidiary of Hyundai Mobis, announced plans to open its second Alabama facility at the Jefferson County Metropolitan Industrial Park in McCalla. Mobis currently operates a facility in Montgomery County that supplies the Hyundai plant in Montgomery and Kia plant in West Point, Ga.

Alabama auto supplier adding 162 jobs
An auto supplier facilitating Mercedes-Benz’s plan to produce electric vehicles is expanding in Tuscaloosa County. Schnellecke Logistics Alabama will move to a new building near the Mercedes-Benz U.S. International automobile plant in Vance, Ala., and plans to add 162 jobs.

Auto parts supplier Valeo expanding to Bessemer with $5 million facility
Valeo North America, a top-10 auto parts supplier in the world, announced plans to expand into Bessemer with a $5 million facility that is expected to create 70 jobs. Valeo will be occupying an existing facility in Bessemer and is expected to be at full production by June.

FLORIDA

Tesla to locate solar energy division in Palm Beach County
The electric vehicle company Tesla is opening a new solar energy division in Palm Beach County. The company will hire 130 in the deal.

GEORGIA

Auto supplier plant bringing hundreds of jobs to Meriwether County
KB Autosys is set to bring a multi-million-dollar manufacturing project to Georgia. The brake pad supplier will spend $38 million to build its first U.S. advanced manufacturing facility in Meriwether County. The project will create around 180 jobs.

KENTUCKY

Automotive EV deals keep popping up in the South
Hitachi Automotive, a well-known Kentucky employer, has announced its Automotive Electric Motor Systems America division will establish a new plant in Berea, Ky. The facility will make motors for electric vehicles, many of which will be made in Kentucky. The deal is expected to create 200 jobs in Berea, located in the eastern part of the state in the mountains of Appalachia.

Tier 1 auto parts supplier expanding in Elizabethtown
Mexican automotive parts supplier Metalsa is expanding its truck vehicle frame plant in Elizabethtown, Ky. The plant is the largest for the company in the U.S., with over 1,800 workers. The new expansion will add 300 jobs. Metalsa is also expanding its plant in Hopkinsville with the addition of 97 there.

NORTH CAROLINA

BorgWarner announces expansion in North Carolina
BorgWarner, a manufacturer of propulsion products for the automotive industry, announced a $62 million expansion of its facilities in Arden, N.C. The project will include at least 100 new jobs.

SOUTH CAROLINA

Once again BMW leads nation in exports by value
For the seventh consecutive year, at $8.9 billion, BMW led all automaker exports by value of its units made in South Carolina, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The top two export countries for the BMW vehicles made in Spartanburg County, S.C., in 2020 were China (23.3 percent of export volume) and Germany (12.9 percent).

South Carolina ports are dealing
The Port of Charleston, which is a major vehicle export facility because of the BMW plant in South Carolina, capped its 2020 year with its strongest December in history. Vehicle volumes were up almost 30 percent from last year. The port handled 135,000 vehicles and 1.2 million containers units in the 2020 fiscal year.

TENNESSEE

GM will build electric crossovers for Honda and Acura in Tennessee
Honda and GM entered into a partnership earlier this year to use GM’s Ultium battery platform in Honda vehicles. GM will apparently build two battery-electric crossovers — one sold as a Honda and another sold as an Acura — within the next four years. According to two anonymous people “familiar with the plans,” Honda’s GM-built EV will be assembled at the American automaker’s plant in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, the same factory that puts the Chevy Blazer and Equinox together. That crossover will reportedly enter production in 2023. Meanwhile, the Acura will reportedly be built in Spring Hill, Tenn., alongside the Cadillac Lyriq, starting in 2024.

GM looking to build second battery plant in Tennessee
Detroit-based General Motors is scouting sites in Tennessee, where it operates one of its largest assembly plants, to locate a second battery factory in the United States. A second battery plant would increase capacity for electric vehicles for the automaker. GM’s joint-venture partner is LG Chem. The two companies are building a $2.3 billion battery factory in Northeast Ohio.

Finnish tire maker adding 400 jobs in Tennessee
Tire manufacturer Nokian plans to nearly double the workforce at its facility in East Tennessee in coming months, part of a plan to add more than a hundred new jobs and significantly increase production. The company expects to add 150 positions that will allow it to go from two shifts to four as demand for tires increases in the North American market.

Auto supplier bringing 240 jobs to Chattanooga
Enterprise South Industrial Park in Chattanooga will be home to a new auto manufacturing plant in the summer of 2021. Sesé Industrial Services, a Spanish manufacturer, will begin new operations in the park, create 240 new jobs, and invest $42 million by 2022. The new plant will assemble axle components for Volkswagen Chattanooga’s first electric Atlas SUV.

EV battery maker to build plant in Tennessee, add 287 jobs
An electric car battery manufacturing company is planning to invest $220 million in a new Tennessee plant that is expected to create 287 new jobs. Microvast plans to renovate and expand a Clarksville facility to build battery cells, modules and packs.

WEST VIRGINIA

Auto parts manufacturer to locate in West Virginia
Speedway Motors, a maker of auto parts, is opening a new distribution center in Kearneysville, W.Va. The deal will create 25 jobs.