TOKYO, Japan - Japan's industry ministry said on Friday that it will provide up to 117.8 billion yen (US$840 million) in subsidies to Toyota Motor Corp to expand its production of electric vehicle (EV) batteries within the country, reported Xinhua.
Amid intensified global competition for batteries, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura told a press conference that he hoped large-scale investments by Toyota and others would significantly strengthen Japan's battery supply chain.
The state support, which will go toward research and development on all-solid-state batteries that Toyota aims to put into practical use for EVs in 2027 or 2028, comes as the country sees boosting the domestic battery supply as a key priority in the auto industry's shift to EVs.
The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry has earmarked 331.6 billion yen in a supplementary budget for fiscal 2022 to reinforce support for investment and development of storage batteries as well as battery parts and materials.
In April, the government decided to provide a subsidy of around 160 billion yen for an EV battery manufacturing project by Honda Motor Co. and major battery maker GS Yuasa Corp.
Previously seen as reluctant to embrace all-battery vehicles, Toyota only sold about 20,000 EVs globally last year. In April, however, the company announced its plan of introducing 10 new EV models by 2026 and selling 1.5 million battery EVs annually. (1 yen equals 0.0071 USD). - BERNAMA-XINHUA