David Dewhurst Photography
Toyota will invest $238 million in Kentucky to launch production of hybrid versions of its RAV4 and Lexus ES at its Georgetown plant, the company announced in mid-March. Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky (TMMK) will start production of the Lexus ES 300 Hybrid in May 2019, with annual capacity of 12,000 units.
The RAV4 Hybrid production will begin production in January 2020, with an annual capacity of 100,000 units. TMMK, the largest Toyota vehicle plant in the world, employs a team of 8,000 and also produces Camry, Camry Hybrid, Avalon, Avalon Hybrid and Lexus ES models, with a capacity of 550,000 vehicles. This will be the first time the RAV4 Hybrid and Lexus ES Hybrid are produced in Kentucky.
Susan Elkington
The Kentucky news came as part of a larger announcement by Toyota, which extended a previous 2017 pledge to invest $10 billion over five years in its U.S. operations to a commitment of $13 billion by 2021. The new investments announced as part of that by Toyota in U.S. facilities, including TMMK, totaled an estimated $749 million and are expected to create 586 new jobs.
“Today’s exciting announcement shows Toyota’s recognition and continued trust in the high-level skills and expertise of our fantastic team here in Kentucky,” said Susan Elkington, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky. “The production changes announced today are centered upon our commitment to meet changing customer desires by diversifying the types of products our team members build here in Georgetown. This is also a further testament to Toyota’s long-term commitment to Kentucky and our team is excited about what these changes mean for the future of our facility.”