Honda to build $3 billion auto plant in central Ohio, adding more than 2,000 jobs
Photo: MotorTrend (file photo)Honda will build a new $3 billion auto plant in central Ohio, creating more than 2,000 jobs and adding capacity for 240,000 vehicles a year, the company announced Monday with Gov. Mike DeWine, JobsOhio and Union County officials.
The new plant will be built on land between Honda's existing Marysville and East Liberty auto plants, and production is expected to begin in 2029, pending final government approvals. It will be Honda's fourth auto plant in Ohio and its ninth auto-related production facility in the United States.
The plant will be flexible enough to build multiple vehicle types and powertrains, including hybrids, gasoline-powered vehicles and battery-electric vehicles. In an environmental filing previously reviewed by The Columbus Dispatch, the project was code-named "Project Sunrise," with construction possibly starting in January 2027 and finishing by December 2029.
In total, Honda's new commitment in Ohio is 2,390 jobs and a $3.38 billion investment, including work at two other Ohio plants. Honda will retool its Transmission Plant-Ohio in Russells Point to support two next-generation Honda hybrid systems, increasing Ohio's hybrid system production capacity by 250 percent in the coming years. It will also retool a production line at the Anna Engine Plant to build a next-generation four-cylinder engine and expand an on-site parts center.
The project was approved for a tax credit Monday morning by the Ohio Tax Credit Authority. Honda also plans to pursue assistance from JobsOhio, which will be made public after a final agreement is signed.
"Honda's leadership could have chosen to build this plant anywhere in the world, but they chose Ohio because there are so many advantages to being here," DeWine said in a statement. "For almost half a century, Honda and Ohio have grown together, and generations of families have built their careers on Honda's manufacturing lines. Today's announcement isn't just an investment in a new facility — it's an investment in Ohio's people and Ohio's future."
"Ohio and its workforce have laid the groundwork that has written some of the most impactful chapters in Honda's story of growth and innovation," said Bob Nelson, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co. "This investment reflects our commitment to building products close to our customers, and our confidence in the people, partners and communities of Ohio."
JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef called it Honda's first greenfield auto assembly facility of this scale in Ohio in more than 35 years, noting that Ohio has the nation's second-largest auto manufacturing workforce and ranks first in engine production and second in transmissions. About 100,000 Ohioans work in the auto industry.
Honda announced its first Ohio plant in 1977 and began building motorcycles in Marysville with 64 workers in 1979. In 1982, it built the first Japanese-brand car made in the United States at the Marysville Auto Plant. Today, Honda's Ohio operations employ more than 15,000 people, with more than $15 billion invested in the state.
The announcement marks a shift in Honda's Ohio strategy. In March, the company scrapped plans to make three electric vehicles in Ohio, but in May it said it would produce more hybrid and conventional-engine vehicles in North America, including in Ohio.
Sources: GlobeNewswire / Honda, JobsOhio, One Columbus, “Governor DeWine, Honda, JobsOhio, One Columbus and Union County Announce New Honda Auto Plant to Boost Hybrid Production” (Nov. 9, 2026); The Columbus Dispatch, “Massive Honda expansion to add thousands of jobs in Marysville” (Nov. 9, 2026).
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