Honda has announced that its Chinese JV, Dongfeng Honda Automobile Co., Ltd., is planning to build a new dedicated electric vehicle (EV) production plant to establish sufficient production system and capability in preparation for the expansion of its EV lineup in the coming years.
Aiming to begin production in 2024, the new dedicated EV plant will be built in Wuhan Economic Development Zone in Hubei Province, China, with annual production capacity of 120,000 units.
Honda says the plant is designed to be capable of start-to-finish EV production and will conduct complete processes for EV production including stamping, welding, painting, assembly and complete vehicle inspection. The company also says the plant will strive to achieve an ‘industry-leading level of automation, mainly in the assembly area’.
The new plant will also ‘proactively pursue sustainability initiatives, which will include utilization of renewable energy sources such as solar power toward the realization of carbon neutrality, use of recycled water and other resource conservation measures and reduction of VOC (volatile organic compounds) emissions, a major source of air pollution.
Honda is targeting carbon neutrality by 2050.