The Orion Assembly production plant has been down on and off since August.
Battery fires were the cause.
Earlier this month, production was to resume in January.
The Chevrolet Bolt is a popular option with consumers who’ve made the jump over to EVs. Unfortunately for them and GM, the Bolt has been plagued with a number of battery issues which eventually warranted a recall.
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Batteries, among other components, are in short supply, meaning that GM has had to idle the Orion Assembly plant. The decision was necessary to supply recalled vehicles with battery packs. For a few in November, Chevrolet did resume production but only to replace affected Bolts.
“GM has notified employees at Orion Assembly the plant will extend downtime through February 2022 to continue prioritizing recall repairs,” GM spokesman Dan Flores said in a statement as reported by The Detroit News. “We will continue to inform employees at the appropriate time of any additional production schedule adjustments, as we continue to focus on battery module replacements.”
This same plant is expected to assemble Ultium-platform-based electric trucks in the future. The Bolt issues, depending on how long they last, may delay these plans.
