GM considers more than $3 billion in battery, EV investments in Michigan

General Motors is eyeing Lansing, Mich., for a new $2.5 billion battery cell manufacturing plant for electric vehicles, a source familiar with the automaker's plans confirmed to Crain's Detroit Business. The automaker also intends to invest more than $2 billion in its Orion, Mich., EV assembly plant to build next-generation electric pickups, the Wall Street Journal reported.

GM and its battery partner LG Energy Solution, under their Ultium Cells joint venture, are planning the battery cell plant near the automaker's Lansing Delta Township Assembly plant, the source told Crain's, a sibling publication to Automotive News.

In total the automaker is considering more than $3 billion in new investment in electric vehicle and battery assembly in Michigan, the source said.

GM and LG have filed a tax exemption document with the City of Lansing through the Ultium Cells joint venture, records show. The document outlines a four-year construction timeline to be completed by Dec. 31, 2025.

Bob Trezise, president & CEO of the Lansing Economic Area Partnership, cautioned Friday that GM has "not made any decisions at all" and that the project is contingent upon a series of local government approvals and tax incentives.

"This is simply putting together what we hope is a very competitive proposal," Trezise told Crain's. "We're going to do our best to do something great for the state and our region. But there are no guarantees. These are just proposals that are part of a fiercely competitive process."

GM also hopes to retool Orion Assembly, which currently builds the Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV, to build electric pickups on its Ultium platform, the Journal reported. The Bolts are built on GM's current battery architecure, not on the Ultium platform that will power GM's next-generation of EVs, starting with the GMC Hummer pickup, which will be shipped to dealerships this month.

"GM is developing business cases for potential future investments in Michigan. As part of developing a competitive business case, we are having discussions with the appropriate local officials on available incentives," spokesman Dan Flores said Friday in a statement. "We are not going to speculate or disclose additional details of the projects under consideration beyond any information included in public filings."

The news of GM's plans for a multibillion-dollar investment tied to tax incentives in its home state comes as the Michigan Legislature moved quickly this week to pass bills that would create a first-of-its-kind pot of money for Michigan to counter other states with cash incentives for large-scale economic development projects.

"These projects are not approved and securing all available incentives will be critical for any business case to continue moving forward," Flores said.

Michigan lawmakers are expected to announce next week how much federal stimulus funding or surplus state tax receipts will be deposited into new funds the Michigan Economic Development Corp. can use to pay for infrastructure improvements and sealing deals with companies promising new jobs.

GM has already begun work on battery cell plants in Lordstown, Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tenn. The automaker has said it would announce two additional U.S. battery sites.

When asked about the locations of those plants, GM CEO Mary Barra on Thursday told reporters to "stay tuned."

"I need to be fair to all parties involved," she said.

Barra said she expected to make the announcement in a matter of weeks.