Toyota - Randolph Record

20 Sep

Man charged after Toyota Battery Manufacturing plant bomb threat

Randolph RecordNewsbomb threat, Liberty, Toyota

Here's a photo of the Toyota Battery Manufacturing site from this summer. (Bob Sutton / Randolph Record) LIBERTY – An arrest was made following what was determined to be a false bomb threat directed at the under-construction Toyota Battery Manufacturing plant. Randolph County Sheriff’s Office announced that Michael John Poirier, 38, of Elon is facing felony charges for a false bomb report. The threat came Monday afternoon directed at the facility on Julian Airport Road. Poirier was arrested at his home and he’s being held on a $30,000 bond, the sheriff’s office said. A statement from Toyota said action was…

17 Jun

Green Metals to join Liberty’s jobs scene

Bob SuttonNewsGreen Metals, jobs, Liberty, Toyota

LIBERTY – Green Metals Inc. is coming to Liberty, providing another jobs boost connected to the Toyota Battery Manufacturing plant at Greensboro-Randolph megasite. The company is a partner in the Toyota Tsusho family associated with scrap/waste handling and recycling solutions. Based on information from the Randolph County Economic Development Corporation, Green Metals will process dry battery material for offsite recycling, as well as handle and store other waste streams. Materials will be packaged and sent off for recycling. Green Metals could make an investment of nearly $19.8 million across five years in the Liberty project, according to RCEDC. The site…

14 Feb

Providence Grove receives $500k from Toyota for jobs program

Randolph RecordNewsgrant, Providence Grove, Toyota

CLIMAX — Communities In Schools “Jobs For North Carolina’s Graduates” (JNCG) program will open a new site at Providence Grove High School in Randolph County after receiving $500,000 from Toyota North Carolina. It’s the second JNCG site in Randolph County, which was also funded by the carmaker. “We’re thrilled to launch a second Jobs for North Carolina’s Graduates program right here in Randolph County thanks to Toyota North Carolina’s generous support of CIS,” said Paula Owens, Executive Director of Communities In Schools of Randolph County in a statement. “As a sister site to the program opened last year at Asheboro…

07 Dec

Spivey riled up to return as Ramseur’s mayor

Bob SuttonNews2023 elections, drinking water, Greensboro-Randolph megasite, Hampton Spivey, Ramseur, Toyota

RAMSEUR – Hampton Spivey is coming back to the mayor’s post in Ramseur and it’s not likely to be a quiet return. The former mayor is mostly concerned with the available drinking water for town residents and making sure the town is fiscally responsible. “Water is the whole reason I ran,” Spivey said. “Just about every issue I’m involved with involves drinking water. If you don’t have clean drinking water, you don’t have anything.” Spivey, 79, won November’s election, ousting incumbent Vicki Caudle. The vote count was 97 to 66. Spivey was mayor from 1995-2010, filling terms that were both…

07 Jun

Toyota bolsters plans for battery plant

Bob SuttonNewsauto industry, automotive plant, battery plant, Toyota, toyota usa

LIBERTY — The Toyota manufacturing project at the Greensboro-Randolph megasite keeps getting bigger. Toyota announced last week that the under-construction battery plant at the megasite would receive an additional $2.1 billion investment because of an assembly plant in Kentucky that will build battery electric SUVs. The Kentucky operation will commence in 2025. Toyota’s release said the boost in the North Carolina project comes “to support the company’s drive toward carbon neutrality.” “Toyota’s continued commitment in North Carolina confirms our status as a manufacturing powerhouse,” North Carolina Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger said. “This expansion further cements our thriving partnership,…

13 Oct

Public encouraged to express views on air quality

Bob SuttonNewsGreensboro-Randolph megasite, North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, Toyota

LIBERTY — With such a major project involving the Greensboro-Randolph megasite, there are bound to be new topics that might create attention in the region. One of them is air quality. The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality is seeking public comment on a draft air quality permit modification for the Toyota Battery Manufacturing facility. “We want to solicit public comment before we make any decision,” said Shawn Taylor, a public information officer with the department. “We’re really hoping to hear from the people, both pro and con.” A change of classification is requested. Public comments will…

28 Sep

Toyota tags funds for education to aid workforce

Bob SuttonNewsLiberty, North Carolina A&T University, Randolph County Schools, Toyota

LIBERTY – Toyota wants to help mold the workforce for the new plant at the Guilford-Randolph megasite. In what company officials describe as an effort to boost workforce readiness and exposure, donations totaling $1 million will be used to expand education opportunities. The effort comes to boost what’s called STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics). Communities in Schools of Randolph County and North Carolina A&T University will each receive $500,000 to help strengthen STEAM education programs that support career readiness. This could be a big deal in Randolph County. Grant funds will be used to support students, empowering…

08 Sep

NCDOT meeting draws big turnout in Liberty

Bob SuttonNewsGreensboro-Randolph megasite, Liberty, North Carolina DOT, Toyota

New road patterns are in place along U.S. 421 and Browns Meadow Road near Liberty. (PJ Brown-Ward/Randolph Record) LIBERTY – There was considerable interest from Randolph County residents at a public meeting held by the North Carolina Department of Transportation to discuss potential changes based on the Greensboro-Randolph megasite. There were 247 attendees signing in for last week’s session. “That’s sizable,” said Harris Kay, a communications officer with NCDOT. “That’s what we want, people coming to ask questions.” Liberty Town Hall was packed with members of the public at some points during the two-hour meeting. There’s much curiosity about the…

05 Sep

Toyota adds to plans for megasite

Randolph RecordBusiness, NewsGreensboro-Randolph megasite, Liberty, Toyota

LIBERTY – Toyota announced an additional investment of $2.5 billion in its newest North American facility, Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina at the Greensboro-Randolph megasite. Last week’s announcement means added capacity to support battery electric vehicle battery production and adds 350 jobs, bringing the total employment to approximately 2,100. Scheduled to begin production in 2025, the facility will produce batteries for hybrid electric vehicles and battery electric vehicles. Construction has begun. Last year, Toyota Motor Corporation announced a global investment of approximately $70 billion for electrification efforts. Last week, as part of this aspirational goal, TMC announced a future battery production…

15 Feb

Toyota announces electric car parts production expansion

The Associated PressBusiness, Government, NewsElectric Vehicles, Toyota

BUFFALO, W.Va. — Toyota Motor Corp. announced Friday that it will further expand production of electric vehicle parts at plants in West Virginia and Tennessee in a $90 million investment. The announcement comes three months after the Japanese automaker said it would invest $240 million to add a production line dedicated to hybrid powertrains at its facility in Buffalo, West Virginia. The latest upgrade involves spending $73 million at the plant to annually assemble an estimated 120,000 rear motor stators, a key component in electric motors. “Toyota is moving quickly toward an electrified future, and West Virginia will play a…