GM to close Detroit electric vehicle battery assembly plant — InsideEVs

General Motors will close the Brownstown Battery Assembly facility in Detroit, where high-voltage batteries for the Cadillac Celestiq electric sedan, as well as batteries and drive modules for the Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray, were assembled. As InsideEVs reports, the company confirmed the site's closure.

The facility will be decommissioned

The 480,000-square-foot plant opened in 2009. According to Automotive News, cited by the publication, the facility is planned to be decommissioned by next summer, when the lease expires.

The number of employees at the site fell from around 300 people during the busiest period to fewer than a dozen. This happened after production declined amid weaker-than-expected demand. Employees affected by the changes were notified earlier this year and offered jobs at other facilities in the region.

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Shift in production priorities

The closure of Brownstown Battery Assembly comes as GM revises its powertrain strategy. The company continues to produce electric vehicles, but now prioritizes vehicles with gasoline engines.

Earlier this year, GM withdrew from a joint battery plant construction project with Samsung SDI in Indiana. In 2024, the automaker also abandoned its participation in a $2.5 billion battery plant project in Lansing, leaving LG Energy Solution in charge of the project.

In the third quarter, GM sold 25,472 electric vehicles in the United States, compared with 66,501 in the same period a year earlier. The publication notes that last year's figures were affected by demand ahead of the cancellation of the $7,500 federal tax credit.