GM postpones expanding production of electric trucks

General Motors is putting off adding a second factory for production of its electric pickups until late 2025, the automaker announced Tuesday.

The Silverado EV is now being produced at GM’s Factory Zero Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly, where it is built alongside the GMC Hummer EV. The GMC Sierra EV is also set to be built there beginning next year.

But GM had planned to start producing the electric pickups at an additional Michigan factory, Orion Assembly just north of Detroit, as well. That ‘s where the Chevrolet Bolt EV and Bolt EUV are made now. Instead, when those electric vehicles go out of production at the end of this year, the factory will not shift quickly to making the trucks.

The decision had nothing to do with the ongoing United Auto Workers strike, GM said, but was to “manage capital” and to better align with “evolving EV demand.” The move involving the Orion Township factory raises broader questions about dynamics and demand in the EV market.