General Motors Co. will again push back the planned opening of an electric pickup truck plant in suburban Detroit and has delayed a Buick plug-in amid uncertain growth in battery-powered car sales.
Mary Barra, the company’s chief executive officer, told analysts Tuesday on an earnings conference call the automaker is postponing until mid-2026 the opening of its Orion Assembly factory, which will make the Chevrolet Silverado EV. This is the second delay for the plant, which was originally slated to start production in late 2024.
Shares of the automaker fell 4.1% to $47.52 as of 9:39 a.m. in New York. The stock is up about 32% so far this year.
The delay is a main reason why GM won’t be able to meet its previous goal of having production in place to make 1 million EVs by the end of next year. The company said they will add production as buyers show more interest in electric vehicles.
“We continue to make sure we continue to scale the business to customers and where they are at,” GM Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said on a call with reporters.
GM reported on Tuesday a 60% jump in second quarter profit compared with a year ago, topping Wall Street’s expectations on strong demand for its traditional gas-powered trucks in the US market.