President of Toyota’s BEV Factory Akero Kato expressed his love for BEVs and his hope that they would have a similar range to the company’s hybrid vehicles.
Toyota Motor held its annual general shareholders’ meeting yesterday in Tokyo, and a significant portion of the conversation focused on the business’ electrification strategy. Toyota unveiled its newest project, the BEV Factory, at a time when the market placed a strong emphasis on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as a crucial means of achieving carbon neutrality. As it integrates all facets of BEV development, production, and business operations with the main goal of facilitating quicker decision-making and implementation processes, this newly established division attracted a lot of attention.
The BEV Factory division of Toyota will introduce its upcoming lineup of next-generation battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in 2026. To help Toyota reach its goal of selling 3.5 million BEVs by 2030, these BEVs are expected to contribute roughly 1.7 million units. Takero Kato, the president of BEV Factory, responded to a string of 11 inquiries from shareholders about the division’s operations and future plans during the shareholders’ meeting.
A shareholder questioned Toyota’s ability to compete with Tesla during the shareholders’ meeting, given the company’s recent announcement of increased investments in battery plants and its intention to begin producing BEVs in the US by 2025. Critics have noted that Toyota is perceived as being behind in the BEV market and that Tesla is frequently used as the standard for comparison.
Executive Vice President Yoichi Miyazaki and Chief Scientist Gill Pratt reiterated the company’s commitment to creating a variety of powertrain solutions during the shareholders’ meeting while talking about Toyota’s powertrain strategy. However, the answer to the query was more thorough and enthused when it came from the president of Toyota’s BEV Factory.
“I love BEVs. Through BEVs, I want to change the future of cars, monozukuri, and work. First, the cars. We will aim for the same cruising range as the hybrid vehicles that have been so popular. This is a big task. We want people to feel Toyota’s unique character in the BEV products we create and deliver.”
Kato stated that the company is prepared to make significant changes in terms of production and the amount of components required for vehicle manufacturing. Toyota’s goal to achieve a comparable range to its hybrids, reaching up to 900 miles by 2028, is undoubtedly ambitious.
“Next, monozukuri [Japanese for ‘production’ or ‘making of things’]. We want to change our vehicle structure and halve the length of our production lines, and reduce or eliminate physically strenuous work, protecting Japanese monozukuri and creating a happy workplace for an aging population.”
Speed is prioritized as a key component in the operation of the BEV Factory unit in the modern era.
“Our team brings together all functions of a company, not just development. Our team shares the same concerns of the genba [factory floor] and holds discussions every day. At the same time, working with new partners will enable all of us to come up with new, richer ideas. Everything is new, so we’re very excited! Our excitement and fun doing our jobs will surely be conveyed to everyone.”
Despite not being a fervent advocate for BEVs during his tenure as CEO and current chair of Toyota, Akio Toyoda responded to Kato’s assertion. Toyoda expressed his scepticism about whether love can beat Tesla on its own. He did stress that passionate engineers can create vehicles that deeply resonate with people’s emotions. He promoted interest in the BEVs Toyota will produce.
Source : Insideevs
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