US facility · Automotive
Toyota to invest $1 billion in its Kentucky and Indiana plants
- Company
- Toyota Motor (Toyota City, Aichi)
- Project
- Toyota plants in Georgetown, Kentucky and Princeton, Indiana, Kentucky and Indiana
- Value
- $1B ($800M Kentucky, $200M Indiana)
- Status
- Announced.
- Date
- 2026-03-23
Toyota will spend $800 million at its Kentucky plant to prepare for a second battery electric vehicle and add Camry and RAV4 capacity. Another $200 million goes to Indiana to raise output of the Grand Highlander SUV. The investment is part of Toyota's plan to spend up to $10 billion on US manufacturing over five years.
Why it matters
Producing more of its best-selling models in the US reduces Toyota's exposure to the 15% tariff on Japanese-built cars. The steady flow of plant investments also supports Tokyo's case in Washington that Japanese firms are adding US jobs.
The investment
Toyota announced the plan on March 23, 2026, at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky in Georgetown, as the plant marked 40 years of operations. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear joined the announcement. The Georgetown site is Toyota's largest plant worldwide and employs roughly 10,000 people.
In Indiana, the $200 million lets the Princeton plant build the Grand Highlander in its East Plant alongside the Sienna minivan, in addition to its existing line in the West Plant, where it is assembled with the Lexus TX.
Toyota said the $1 billion counts toward its pledge, made in November 2025, to invest up to $10 billion in US manufacturing over five years. When it made that pledge, Toyota also committed $912 million to five plants in West Virginia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee and Missouri to expand hybrid output. That package included $204.4 million for hybrid capacity at Georgetown.
Electric vehicles in Kentucky
Georgetown is already set to build Toyota's first US-assembled battery electric vehicle, the three-row 2027 Highlander, which Toyota unveiled in February 2026 with sales expected to start in late 2026. Its battery modules come from Toyota's battery plant in North Carolina. The new $800 million prepares the plant for a second, as yet unnamed, battery electric model.
Community spending
Alongside the plant spending, Toyota pledged $4.4 million to Fayette and Scott County schools and Eastern Kentucky University. Reports of the announcement did not mention any new state tax incentive package or a job creation target tied to this round of investment.
Sources
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