Volvo Cars announced it will expand production at its South Carolina plant.
Volvo Cars, the Swedish automaker that already has a substantial presence in Charleston, announced it will expand its South Carolina operations by 2030, adding a fresh hybrid model while growing its staff to 4,000. Officials shared the news at their Ridgeville site this week.
“The Charleston plant is foundational to our strategic growth plan for the U.S.,” said Luis Rezende, president of Americas for Volvo Cars in a release. “By adding another model into production here, we’ll take a big step toward realizing the full potential of our local manufacturing investments.”
The plant, worth $1.3 billion, makes EX90 SUVs and Polestar 3s. Workers build 100 vehicles each day at 240 stations. While yearly output sits at 26,000, the site could handle six times that amount.
Trade rules sparked this growth push. European imports face steep 27.5% fees, though new talks cut this to 15%. “The tariffs have accelerated this process; it would be fair to admit that,” said Håkan Samuelsson, CEO of Volvo Cars, according to Yahoo Finance.
Construction started in 2015, with cars rolling off lines by 2018. The S60 sedan, once made here, stopped last summer. Now this site brings in one-fifth of Volvo’s global sales cash.
XC60 sales hit 27,000 in the first eight months – up 20% from 2024. Within five years, half of U.S.-sold Volvos should come from South Carolina.
At the event, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster gave awards to company leaders. “More and more people will be educated and trained to do these jobs that become more sophisticated every day,” McMaster said, according to ABC News 4.
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