Mercedes-Benz to invest $1 billion in to produce electric vehicles in Alabama
Mercedes-Benz announced plans to invest $1 billion in Alabama to produce electric vehicles. The investment will go both to an expansion of the German luxury brand’s existing plant near Tuscaloosa and to build a new 1 million-square-foot battery factory. Mercedes’ move comes as the major German automakers, including Volkswagen and BMW, are pivoting rapidly away from diesel engines amid increasingly rigid global emissions regulations. Mercedes said it plans to begin construction in 2018 and start production in “the beginning of the next decade.” The move fits squarely within Daimler’s plan to offer more than 50 vehicles with some form of hybrid or electric powertrain by 2022.