Governor Laura Kelly
Governor Laura Kelly announced Wednesday afternoon that Panasonic Energy plans to develop an electric vehicle battery facility in De Soto, Kansas. It’s a FOUR BILLION dollar investment that will create up to 4,000 high quality jobs and boost the entire state’s economy. This is the largest private investment in Kansas history.
The project is still pending approval by Panasonic Holdings Corporation board of directors.
The deal comes amid a flurry of competition from countries and companies trying to meet the rising demand for electric vehicles.
Kansas reportedly beat out Oklahoma as a candidate for the new battery factory. Panasonic has previously announced a desire to more than triple its EV battery production capacity by the 2028 fiscal year.
Panasonic’s first U.S. plant in Nevada, the Gigafactory 1, is jointly operated with Tesla.
The previously mentioned tax breaks that likely enticed the Japanese company are tied to the largest-ever taxpayer-funded incentives that Kansas passed in February of 2022.
Governor Kelly says she believes an additional 4,000 jobs will be created by suppliers and etc. meaning there will be nearly 8,000 new jobs coming to Kansas as a result of this investment.