The automotive future is electric. For years, it seemed that Tesla (TSLA Quick QuoteTSLA - Free Report) was the only automaker that was playing at the forefront of the electric vehicle (EV) phenomenon and taking the concept of green vehicles seriously from a real-world functionality standpoint. However, things are changing as most of the automakers are now fast changing gears to electric.

Climate concerns, stringent fuel-economy targets, and advancement in technology as well as charging infrastructure are boosting the EV market. Automakers across the globe have been revving up their e-mobility efforts to establish a strong foothold in this domain. They are making big investments and setting ambitious targets to electrify their fleet.

While auto giants are on track to roll out more environment-friendly vehicles in the United States, it should be noted that battery cell production in the nation is rather limited. Most of the battery cells for green vehicles are produced in Asia (primarily in China, Japan and South Korea).

Apart from Tesla’s Nevada gigafactory, which supplies battery cells for Models 3 and Y, there are only a handful of U.S. battery plants that are currently operational. However, in 2021, several auto biggies announced plans to step up battery production in the United States.  With batteries serving as the secret sauce for EVs, automakers are beginning to enhance their investments in battery production.

Notably, the Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office issued a report last week, listing 13 new U.S. battery projects that are expected to be completed by around mid-decade, which is set to usher a new wave of battery production in the country. The list somehow missed TSLA, which is also deploying battery cell production capacity at the Austin Gigafactory.

Below we have highlighted four auto biggies General Motors (GM Quick QuoteGM - Free Report) , Ford (F Quick QuoteF - Free Report) , Toyota (TM Quick QuoteTM - Free Report) and Stellantis (STLA Quick QuoteSTLA - Free Report) , all of which made big bets on U.S. battery plants this year.

General Motors: In April, General Motors and LG Energy announced plans to jointly invest more than $2.3 billion to build a battery manufacturing plant in Spring Hill, TN. This marked the firms’ second U.S. Ultium battery plant after they announced a $2.3-billion battery cell manufacturing plant in Lordstown, OH, in 2019. While the Ohio plant is expected to become operational in 2022, the facility in Tennessee will commence production in 2023. GM plans to set up two new battery cell manufacturing plants in the United States by mid-decade, in addition to the facilities in Ohio and Tennessee. Details of these plants are yet to be announced.

In October, GM set the stage for battery tech innovation with the announcement of establishing a new research facility in Michigan — Wallace Battery Innovation Center. The Wallace Center will help General Motors reach its target of achieving a 60% reduction in battery costs by mid-decade. The lab is likely to develop its first prototype cells in fourth-quarter 2022. Early this month, GM teamed up with POSCO Chemical to form a JV to construct a factory in North America, which would process Cathode Active Material (CAM) for the automaker’s Ultium platform. The new facility will supply most of the CAM required by General Motors’ battery plants under construction in Ohio and Tennessee and two additional U.S. factories planned by mid-decade.

This year, General Motors boosted electric and driverless investment to $35 billion through 2025, up from $27 billion proposed in November 2020. The automaker also plans to introduce more than 30 EV models globally by 2025, with more than two-thirds available in the United States. GM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Ford: In September, Ford announced plans to establish twin battery plants in Kentucky and a technologically-advanced mega campus in Tennessee. The U.S. auto giant will partner with SK Innovation, and the firms will together invest $11.4 billion (with Ford’s share being $7 billion) for the same. Approximately $5.6 billion of the total outlay will go for building an all-new mega campus called Blue Oval City in Stanton, TN. The investment will create roughly 6,000 new jobs and revamp vehicle and battery designing, manufacturing, and recycling. Joining the Blue Oval City is a planned $5.8-billion, 1,500-acre BlueOvalSK battery manufacturing campus in Glendale, KY, which is targeted to commence operations in 2025. The twin lithium-ion battery plants on the site will create 5,000 jobs and are intended to supply Ford’s North American assembly plants with locally-assembled batteries for powering the next-generation electric Ford and Lincoln vehicles.

The investment is part of Farley’s “Ford+” turnaround plan to make the automaker’s operations more profitable and create a niche in the trending sectors such as autonomous, electric, and connected vehicles. Ford has committed to invest more than $30 billion by 2025 for the electrification of its commercial and retail fleet by capitalizing on its strength, starting with the EV versions of its most popular models. The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.

Toyota: Early this month, Toyota announced plans to build the first battery factory in the United States in North Carolina to bring its EV supply chain to the country. The Japan-based automaker plans to invest $1.29 billion in the battery plant, to be named Toyota Battery Manufacturing, North Carolina (TBMNC). The facility is expected to create 1,750 new jobs and use 100% renewable energy to make the batteries. The production is anticipated to commence in 2025. TBMNC will initially have four production lines, each capable of manufacturing battery packs for around 200,000 cars annually. Toyota eventually aims to add two more lines, with the goal to rev up the total production capacity to battery packs sufficient for 1.2 million vehicles per year.

The investment decision forms part of Toyota’s wider commitment to investing $3.4 billion (380 billion yen) for automotive battery development and production in the United States through 2030. To cater to the surging demand for clean energy vehicles in the United States, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company targets EVs to account for nearly 70% of U.S. sales by 2030, up from almost 25% currently. TM expects to sell as many as 1.8 million electrified vehicles in the United States by 2030, including zero-emission models.

Stellantis: In October, Stellantis entered into a joint venture deal with LG Energy to develop battery cells in North America. Per the deal, the companies will jointly establish a battery factory having an annual capacity of 40 gigawatt-hours (GWh) that will be functional by first-quarter 2024. In the same month, STLA also announced its collaboration with Samsung SDI for battery production in North America. With Samsung, it will develop a plant with an initial annual capacity of 23 GWh, having an expansion capacity up to 40 GWh. This plant is expected to become operational in 2025. Neither the associated cost nor the location of the factories has been disclosed yet. 

The agreements are in sync with Stellantis’ plans to invest more than €30 billion through 2025 in electrification and software development. In the United States, STLA aims for more than 40% of total sales to comprise low-emission vehicles within the same time period. The auto giant will deliver upon the electrification strategy by securing 130 gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery capacity by 2025, which will expand up to 260 GWh by 2030. Stellantis currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.