According to multiple media reports today, Japan will provide more subsidies for the production of electric vehicle batteries.

Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ken Saito, stated that the Japanese government will provide support and subsidies totaling up to 350 billion yen (approximately 17.395 billion RMB) for 12 battery or related component/material/production equipment projects to strengthen the country's power battery industry chain.

With this support, Japan's annual production capacity of power batteries will increase by 50%, from the current 80GWh to 120GWh. The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry plans to further increase the domestic battery production capacity to 150GWh by 2030.

According to reports, the projects supported by the Japanese government's subsidies include battery projects of Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor, cooperative projects of Panasonic's energy division and auto manufacturer Subaru Corp Unsponsored ADR, as well as joint projects of Panasonic's energy division and Mazda Motor.

Toyota revealed that the Japan Automobile Industry Ministry has approved the company's R&D and production plans for next-generation batteries and solid-state batteries, but did not disclose the specific investment amount or the new factories involved.

However, it has been reported that Toyota intends to expand production of lithium batteries and other products in its two battery subsidiaries. It plans to establish a new power battery factory in Fukuoka Prefecture, with production scheduled to start at the end of 2028. The total investment, including the Hyogo Prefecture factory, will amount to approximately 250 billion yen (about 12.425 billion RMB), with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry providing approximately 85 billion yen in subsidies.

Nissan's production plan for lithium iron phosphate batteries has also been approved by the government. Nissan plans to install these batteries in electric vehicles starting from the 2028 fiscal year, with a target capacity of 5GWh per year, and will receive subsidies totaling up to 55.5 billion yen.

Panasonic's energy division and Subaru announced in a joint statement that they will build a factory in Gunma Prefecture, northern Tokyo, to supply cylindrical batteries from the 2028 fiscal year. In addition, Panasonic will supply cylindrical batteries to Subaru from its Osaka factory starting from the 2027 fiscal year. The goal of both parties is to achieve an annual production capacity of 16 GWh at the Gunma factory and 4 GWh at the Osaka factory by 2030.

In addition, Panasonic will produce power batteries for Mazda automobiles through its Juzo Higashi and Kawazoe factories in Osaka starting from the 2027 fiscal year.

It is worth noting that Japan has provided subsidies for its domestic power batteries on multiple occasions before this:

The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has positioned electric vehicle batteries as "important materials for ensuring economic security" and ensured that 330 billion yen will be allocated for the research and supply of batteries in the second supplementary budget for the fiscal year 2022; in April 2023, they provided approximately 160 billion yen in subsidies for investments in Honda and Toyoshiba's lithium battery plans; in June 2023, they announced approximately 120 billion yen in subsidies for Toyota's power lithium battery investments in Japan.