This Tesla Battery Supplier Will Build A $4B Plant In Kansas: Why It's Important For Elon Musk's Company

Tesla, Inc. TSLA battery supplier Panasonic Holdings Corp's PCRFY subsidiary has zeroed in on the U.S. state of Kansas as the site to build its second U.S. lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant.

What Happened: The midwestern state of Kansas, known as America's bread basket, has approved a state incentive application filed by Panasonic Energy, the Japanese company and Kansas Governor Laura Kelly jointly announced. De Soto, Kansas has been identified as the potential site for the project.

Panasonic sees the plant driving significant economic activity and opportunities for the local economy. It would generate 4,000 new jobs and involve an investment of about $4 billion.

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Why It's Important: The planned facility in Kansas will support Panasonic's commitment to reduce global carbon emissions, Panasonic said. "Kansas has an impressive history of being home to a skilled manufacturing workforce," said Yasuaki Takamoto, executive VP of Panasonic Energy and head of its EV Battery Business.

"We appreciate Kansas's dedication to sustainability and its commitment to and growth in the clean and renewable energy space."

Panasonic began producing lithium-ion batteries in the U.S. in Sparks, Nevada about five years back. The company noted that the plant is one of the world's largest lithium-ion battery factories, producing six billion electric vehicle battery cells.

"Nevada will continue, the new facility in Kansas is intended to further support Panasonic's long-term commitment to advancing the EV industry in the US," the company said. The Kanas plant will help Panasonic bring battery production closer to Tesla's Giga Texas plant. Panasonic's shares trading over the counter closed Wednesday's session down 1.05% at $8.05, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Photo via yu_photo on Shutterstock