Energy

Panasonic begins mass EV battery production at new Kansas plant

Ken Metral

15 Jul 2025 — 2 min read

Credit: Panasonic EV battery manufacturing plant in De Soto, Kansas.

Panasonic Holdings Corp. is moving ahead at full speed with its newest battery manufacturing plant in De Soto, Kansas, aiming to reach full production by the end of 2025, according to a senior executive. Megan Myungwon Lee, Panasonic's head of North American operations, confirmed the timeline during a Bloomberg TV interview, directly addressing recent reports that suggested delays in the plant's ramp-up.

“We’re going to be full production this year,” Lee stated, countering claims made by Japan’s Nikkei last week that Panasonic was planning to delay bringing the Kansas facility to full capacity. “When we commit to something, we’re fully committed and we want to make sure we support all the customers,” she added, emphasizing the company’s confidence in the growing electric vehicle (EV) sector.

The Kansas factory, located near Kansas City, represents Panasonic’s second EV battery production site in the United States. While some parts of the site are still under construction, the facility is already online and producing battery cells. Once completed, it will boast an annual output capacity of approximately 32 gigawatt-hours (GWh) — enough to power around 500,000 electric vehicles.

The new plant will serve not only Tesla Inc., Panasonic’s largest U.S. battery cell customer, but also a broader range of EV manufacturers including Lucid Group Inc. and Norway-based Hexagon Purus ASA. “We’re definitely working with Tesla but we want to work with other established OEMs as well as startups,” Lee noted. Despite a 13% drop in Tesla’s U.S. sales in the second quarter year-over-year, she said Panasonic remains “very bullish” on EV demand.

Panasonic has maintained a strong battery supply partnership with Tesla since 2017 through its Nevada-based Gigafactory, which currently produces about 41 GWh annually. Once the Kansas facility is fully operational, the company’s total U.S.-based battery production capacity will rise to approximately 73 GWh per year.

Lee made the announcement during a grand opening event for the Kansas plant, underlining the strategic importance of the facility in Panasonic’s broader push to meet rising demand from both legacy automakers and emerging EV startups. The expansion also signals Panasonic’s long-term commitment to supporting the clean energy transition and solidifying its foothold in the competitive U.S. battery market.

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