Auto part supplier to open facility in New Mexico

Hota Industrial Manufacturing Co Ltd (和大工業), a Taiwanese company that manufactures and sells gears and axles for electric vehicles, including Tesla models, on Wednesday announced that it would partner with New Mexico to build a facility in the US state’s industrial park.

Hota, which has numerous North American and European clients, made a formal announcement on Wednesday in Taipei that it would invest approximately US$99 million to build its first manufacturing plant outside of Asia in New Mexico’s Santa Teresa Borderplex industrial park.

“Hota has long been committed to the research, development and manufacturing of alternative energy power train components, and our successful collaboration with renowned EV makers has positioned us as a long-term strategic partner for leading EV companies in the US,” Hota chairman David Shen (沈國榮) said.

Hota CEO Holly Shen (沈千慈) said the construction of the facility in New Mexico is scheduled to begin in early next year, with fullscale production set to begin in the second quarter of 2025.

Hota’s expansion in New Mexico has been aided by the state government, which has helped it locate 12.14 hectares of land and provided a US$3 million “state job investment,” New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said.

The company would also be eligible for “several additional tax credit opportunities, including training for employees and manufacturing tax credits,” Grisham said.

David Shen said Hota’s decision to build the facility in the US had been spurred by geopolitical factors that have disrupted the global supply chain.

He said he had been considering three US states to potentially invest in, but chose New Mexico after taking into account a variety of factors including “location, utility supplies, the cost of doing business, transportation infrastructure, wages, tax rates, land cost and availability, construction, the crime rate and the weather.”

When asked about the incentives to establish a facility in New Mexico, David Shen said the US$3 million is for the basic infrastructure of the facility such as electricity and fire control, and that other subsidies for local employees’ wages would also be available — every local worker hired is subsidized with 1,450 hours of pay, which equals about one year.

There is also a federal government subsidy for electric vehicles produced in the US.