Proterra to build EV battery factory in South Carolina

Proterra has announced plans to open a new EV battery system manufacturing plant in South Carolina.

As demand for commercial electric vehicles grows, Proterra Inc. has announced plans to open a new electric  battery system manufacturing plant in South Carolina to produce the company’s battery systems for Proterra Powered customers’ commercial electric vehicles, including delivery and work trucks, construction equipment, buses, and more.

Proterra has committed to a minimum investment of at least $76 million, with additional investments planned over the next several years, and said it expects to create more than 200 new jobs over the next several years at the 327,000 sq.ft. battery system production plant. The factory is expected to launch in the second half of 2022 with multiple gigawatt hours of annual production capacity for Proterra’s battery systems. By 2025, the factory is expected to support additional battery system production capacity, as well as the production of ancillary systems incorporated into electric medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicles and equipment.

Proterra’s new battery system manufacturing facility will be located at the 42.76-acre Carolina Commerce Center in Greer,  near Proterra’s electric bus manufacturing facility in Greenville, S.C., and adjacent to the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport. By opening the company’s first EV battery system factory in the eastern United States, Proterra said it will bring battery production closer to its customers and its own Proterra Transit electric bus manufacturing operations.

“Electric vehicle technology is an opportunity to create clean energy jobs, strengthen American manufacturing, and advance the U.S.’s climate leadership on a global scale. Through opening our new battery system production plant, Proterra is proud to help realize these important goals while driving the transition to clean, quiet transportation with our EV technology,” said Gareth Joyce, president of California-based Proterra. “With our company’s history in South Carolina and the Upstate region, we are excited to build on our strong partnership with the state of South Carolina, Spartanburg County, and the City of Greer and bring EV battery system manufacturing to the region.”

Proterra’s new South Carolina factory represents the company’s third battery production facility nationwide. In December 2020, the company opened its second battery production site co-located in its EV bus manufacturing facility in Los Angeles County.

Designed and manufactured in the United States, Proterra’s battery systems have been proven through more than 20 million service miles driven by its transit customers and selected by world-class commercial vehicle manufacturers to electrify delivery vehicles, work trucks, construction and mining equipment, school buses, coach buses and more.