Panasonic Confirms It Will Not Open Facility In Oklahoma

An electric vehicle battery plant will not be built in Oklahoma, the company confirmed Tuesday.

Panasonic said it was exploring building a factory in the state in April 2023 and decided to not move forward with the development.

"The Legislature provided that which was requested by the Executive Branch to win the commitment of Project Ocean. Oklahoma remains open for business and we are excited about the economic development advancement we have recently seen in our state, including the 1,500-job manufacturing facility under construction by Enel. This session I will again push for more improvements to our tax structure to make us number one in the country for our citizens and businesses, which will help attract the jobs of the future," Speaker Charles McCall said

The plans were to have the facility built at Pryor's MidAmerica Industrial Park.

Here's the company statement sent to News On 6 confirming the information.

Panasonic Energy is always exploring growth opportunities and evaluating ways to strengthen our business and advance the EV industry in the United States. To that end, in April 2023, we entered into an agreement with the state of Oklahoma to explore building a factory in the state, with the understanding that we would make a decision about whether or not to move forward at the end of that exploratory process. After careful deliberations, we have made the decision not to move forward with developing the site. 

Decisions about where to position new facilities are extraordinarily complex and are based on a wide range of factors. We are grateful for the conversations we had with officials from across the political spectrum to discuss the potential for Oklahoma to play a role in Panasonic Energy’s growing footprint across North America. This decision will not impact our operations in Nevada or Kansas; we have made a long-term commitment to investing in and advancing the EV industry in the United States, and we remain focused on delivering the highest quality batteries for our customers.

In July 2022, Panasonic selected Kansas over Oklahoma to build North America's second-largest manufacturing plant. The company said that Monday's decision will not impact the Kansas operations.

The decision comes after lawmakers in Oklahoma approved a nearly-$700 million economic plan that was designed to entice new businesses to open facilities in the state.

“Panasonic had already chosen to go to Kansas last year. We would have been thrilled had both parties been able to sign an agreement earlier to expand here to Oklahoma when market conditions were stronger, but hopefully we can find another opportunity to partner with them in the future," Gov. Kevin Stitt said.