General Motors Co. announced Jan. 20 plans to invest $918 million in four U.S. manufacturing sites, including $854 million to prepare these facilities to produce the company’s sixth generation Small Block V-8 engine and an additional $64 million in Rochester, NY, and Defiance, OH, for castings and components to support EV production.
These investments will enable the company to strengthen its industry-leading full-size truck and SUV business and continue to support the company’s growing EV product portfolio. Product details, timing, performance and features related to GM’s next gen V-8 engine are not being released at this time.
The announcement brings GM’s U.S. manufacturing facility investment commitments to more than $37 billion since 2013, including the Ultium Cells LLC joint venture plants.
"Today we are announcing significant investments to strengthen our industry-leading lineup of full-size pickups and SUVs by preparing four U.S. facilities to build GM’s sixth generation Small Block V-8 engine,” said Gerald Johnson, GM executive vice president of global manufacturing and sustainability. “These investments, coupled with the hard work and dedication of our team members in Flint, Bay City, Rochester and Defiance, enable us to build world-class products for our customers and provide job security at these plants for years to come.”
These investments bolster GM’s U.S. manufacturing operations, which includes more than 50 assembly, stamping, propulsion and component plants and parts distribution centers nationwide. It also highlights the company’s commitment to continue providing customers a strong portfolio of ICE vehicles well into the future while continuing to accelerate its transformation to an all-electric future.
Details of the announcement include:
Flint Engine Operations& in Michigan
GM will invest $579 million to prepare the plant to assemble GM’s sixth generation family of Small Block V-8 gas engines along with the related block, crank and head machining. Work at the facility will begin immediately. Flint will continue building the 3.0L turbo-diesel during the facility renovations. GM’s 3.0L diesel is used in a variety of light-duty truck applications.
Bay City GPS in Michigan
GM will invest $216 million to prepare the facility to build camshafts, connecting rods and block/head machining supporting future V-8 production at Flint Engine Operations.
Defiance Operations in Ohio
GM will invest $55 million in the Defiance facility. $47 million will be invested to prepare the facility to build a variety of block castings to support future V-8 engine programs. In addition, the investment includes $8 million to build a casting development cell for castings to support future EV strategies.
Rochester Operations in New York
GM will invest a total of $68 million in the Rochester facility. $12 million will be invested to prepare the facility to build intake manifolds and fuel rails for the future V-8 production at Flint Engine Operations. In addition, the investment includes $56 million for the production of battery pack cooling lines for EV production.
“Our union celebrates the announcement of these new investments into our GM facilities, which will benefit our members at Locals 659 (Flint), 362 (Bay City), 211 (Defiance) and 1097 (Rochester),” said UAW President Ray Curry. “The skill and dedication of UAW members are a key part of GM’s success, and this investment recognizes that our members will remain a vital part of GM’s future.”
“The teams in Rochester and Defiance are also leading our transformation to an all-electric future,” Johnson added. “Their flexibility to build components for both internal combustion and electric vehicles highlights why our manufacturing team is second to none.”
Source: GM
