Here’s How Honda’s Ohio EV Hub Plans Are Going So Far

• Honda reveals progress in building an EV hub in Ohio, converting its plants to produce components for EVs and assemble them starting in late 2025.

• The automaker plans to start producing battery-electric models alongside internal combustion vehicles in Marysville, Ohio, following the debut of Ultium-based EVs that use GM's platform.

• The EV hub plans include a battery production plant, part of a joint venture with LG Energy Solution, that is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.

The Honda Prologue has kicked off the automaker's latest EV lineup, after some smaller-scale experiments that included the Honda Clarity EV last decade. (Don't worry if you don't remember that one—it was sold in tiny numbers in just a handful of US states). The Prologue, on the other hand, is a mass-market effort, albeit based on GM's platform. And it's already on sale this year.

But in the near future, Honda will produce EVs in Marysville, Ohio. And it sounds like it will happen sooner than initially anticipated, by the end of 2025.

Honda says that retooling is underway for assembly of the Intelligent Power Unit (IPU), which includes the battery and forms part of a vehicle's platform. Honda already plans for its associates at the Marysville Auto Plant (MAP) to begin training for IPU assembly and EV production later this year.

Honda is reworking MAP to allow it to produce EVs and internal combustion models at the same time. The automaker recently tore out most of its second production line as part of consolidating the two lines, with the additional space planned to be used for staging and parts delivery, as well as for greater ease of movement.

"The establishment of our EV Hub is not simply an investment in retooling and equipment, we are investing in the Honda associates who will be taking on new responsibilities to lead us into the electrified future," said Bob Nelson, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

A new workspace has also been created where some 300 associates will sub-assemble the IPU. Eventually, this facility will supply IPUs for both MAP and the East Liberty Auto Plant (ELP).