Volkswagen’s Scout brand received an incentive of almost $1.3 billion for its $2 billion manufacturing factory in South Carolina. State Governor Henry McMaster signed legislation approving the incentive.
According to South Carolina’s Commerce Secretary Harry Lightsey, Scout will also receive up to $180 million in tax credits for job development based on hiring. Volkswagen recently shared that Scout is estimated to create 4,000 jobs in the area. Scout’s South Carolina plant will need workers for its body shop, paint shop, and final assembly buildings
Scout’s production plant is expected to start by late 2026. The $2 billion Scout facility will sit on 1,600 acres. It will focus on producing electric trucks and rugged SUVs.
Earlier this year, Scout CEO Scott Keogh teased that the company would debut its first all-electric mule in the third quarter. The electric mule is expected to start at $40,000.
🚙 Our colleagues from #ScoutMotors are pushing to craft #electric trucks & rugged SUVs in South Carolina, USA.
— Volkswagen Group (@VWGroup) June 25, 2024
The 1.84bn-EUR factory will create over 4,000 jobs & includes
✅ body shop
✅ paint shop
✅ final assembly buildings
Start of production is targeted for late 2026. pic.twitter.com/EeZ83OyRim
“The design of the product is, I would say, 85, 90, 95 percent of the way there. Proportions readily dialed in, exterior design dialed in,” said Keogh.
“What we are pushing for is what I would call a sort of large B SUV and then a full-size pickup,” Keogh explained. “That’s what we’ll be bringing to the market but certainly there’s opportunities there, and when we have some to announce, we will.”
Volkswagen hopes the Scout brand will help it break through the electric pickup truck market in the United States. The German automaker aims to increase its market share in the US car market.
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