Overview

• Panasonic started mass production of 2170 cells at the De Soto plant on July 14, aiming for a 32 GWh annual run-rate that will climb to 73 GWh once fully operational.
• The 300-acre facility cost $4 billion and manufactures advanced 2170 cylindrical cells with 5% higher energy density and 20% greater productivity than Panasonic’s Nevada site.
• More than 1,100 workers are already on staff, and the project is projected to support about 8,000 direct manufacturing jobs alongside 16,500 construction roles.
• Onshore production under U.S. incentives is intended to strengthen domestic EV supply chains by cutting dependence on imports and mitigating tariff risks.
• Partnerships with Tesla, Lucid, Mazda and the University of Kansas underscore efforts to broaden Panasonic’s customer base and spur battery innovation in the Midwest.