Panasonic Holdings, a battery supplier to Tesla Inc, announced on Sunday that it is exploring developing a battery plant in Oklahoma.
“Panasonic has entered into an agreement with the State of Oklahoma that defines the eligibility and terms of the incentives under Oklahoma’s LEAD Act,” according to the corporation.
Panasonic’s decision to open a battery plant in Oklahoma, first reported by Kyodo news agency, comes at a time when electric car sales are soaring, and other EV makers outside longtime customer Tesla are looking to the Japanese company as a potential battery provider.
In July, the Japanese corporation rejected Oklahoma as the location for its second EV battery plant, instead choosing Kansas to manufacture Tesla batteries.
According to state officials, up to $4 billion in investment will create up to 4,000 employees.
