Chevrolet Silverado EV Truck Will Get Drive Unit Castings From Bedford

GM is investing in the site, which already produces EV Drive Unit Castings for the GMC Hummer EV Pickup and SUV.

GM Bedford Casting Operations

Mark Kane

By: Mark Kane

Dec 8, 2021 at 1:04pm ET

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General Motors announced an investment of more than $51 million at its Bedford Casting Operations in Bedford, Indiana.

The aluminum die casting foundry is promised to get state-of-the-art equipment to support the manufacturing of drive unit castings for the upcoming Chevrolet Silverado EV and other current casting applications.

The EV drive unit castings for the two other Ultium-based models, 2022 GMC Hummer EV pickup and the upcoming 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV, also are produced at the Bedford site.

According to GM, the renovation work will begin immediately at the facility, which was originally opened in 1942.

Phil Kienle, GM vice president of North America Manufacturing and Labor Relations said:

“Our Bedford operation is one of the leading aluminum die casting facilities in the world and this investment is a testament of our confidence in the employees at Bedford. This investment is another example of the company bringing along our workforce in our journey to an all-electric future while we strengthen our current products."

GM Bedford Casting Operations

It appears to be great news that GM is taking the EV drive unit production under its own roof. The company produces also its own battery modules and packs, while the lithium-ion cells will be produced by the Ultium Cells joint venture with LG Chem's LG Energy Solution.

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Those are all signs that the company is treating the new wave of Ultium-based EVs seriously, and because of the anticipated high volume, vertically integrates the production.

The all-electric Chevrolet Silverado EV will debut on Jan. 5, 2022 at CES, which will be an extremely interesting event. Most will be paying attention to the electric Silverado's competitiveness against its most direct competitor, the Ford F-150 Lightning, which will enter the market first, in Spring 2022.