GM plans $491M Indiana plant upgrade to help support EVs

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors said Thursday it will spend $491 million to expand and upgrade an Indiana metal stamping plant for production of steel and aluminum stamped parts for “future vehicles," including electric vehicles.

The automaker said it would install two new press lines, complete press and die upgrades and make renovations to the Marion, Indiana, plant, where a roughly 6,000-square-foot (557.4-square-meter) addition also is planned.

GM said work would begin later this year to prepare the Marion plant “to produce a variety of steel and aluminum stamped parts for future products, including electric vehicles, built at multiple GM assembly plants."

News of the Marion project comes as GM is working to strengthen its foothold in the electric vehicle market.

“While this investment prepares the facility for our all-electric future, it’s really an investment in our talented Marion team and will keep the plant working for many years to come,” Gerald Johnson, GM’s executive vice president of global manufacturing, said in a news release.

GM’s Marion Metal Center opened in 1956 about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis. The plant currently produces sheet metal parts for multiple GM assembly plants to support production of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles.

The plant employs more than 750 people. GM said its employment is expected to remain stable “with the addition of this new work in the plant."

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation has proposed providing GM with up to $12 million in conditional tax credits and up to $500,000 in training grants, among other incentives, based on the company’s plans. That funding must be approved by the IEDC's board of directors.