Magna to add jobs at Michigan plant after winning GM Silverado EV business

Giant auto supplier Magna International won the contract to supply battery enclosures on the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado electric pickup, work that is expected to create hundreds of new jobs in Michigan.

On Monday, Magna announced it will produce the enclosures at its Magna Electric Vehicle Structures facility in St. Clair, where it already makes the battery enclosure for the GMC Hummer EV pickup. Production of the enclosure for the Silverado will start later this year. 

Between the new Silverado EV business and the contract for Hummer EV, Magna’s St. Clair facility expects to go from roughly 300 employees today to about 1,200 employees when it reaches full capacity over the next couple of years, said Tracy Fuerst, vice president of Magna corporate communications.

“The accelerating shift toward vehicle electrification opens up exciting growth opportunities for Magna beyond powertrain,” John O’Hara, president of Magna’s body and chassis group, said in a statement. “We have been able to leverage our expertise to supply battery enclosures — a product for which we see strong potential going forward.”   

A spokesman for GM declined to comment on this deal.

All EVs require battery enclosures, which house high-voltage batteries, electrical components, sensors, and connectors. They protect the crucial battery components from impact, heat and water.

In October, Magna announced it would invest $426 million to expand the plant in St. Clair, which it opened two years ago, to support future growth of EVs. Magna is now constructing the 740,000-square-foot expansion to the 345,000-square-foot facility.

Magna has 348 locations around the world and says it has consolidated sales of $37.8 billion for all of 2022, a 4% increase from the previous year. It makes a variety of auto parts from technology to body and exteriors to power train. It is well known for car seats. As North America’s largest auto supplier, Magna employs more than 11,500 people in Michigan and supplies parts to all the major carmakers.

GM will assemble the Silverado EV at Factory Zero, which straddles Detroit and Hamtramck, starting later this year. GM currently builds the Hummer EV and the all-electric Hummer SUV at Factory Zero.