NS continues to mine more business in automotive hotbed South Carolina
1/8/2026
By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor
Norfolk Southern Railway’s site development expertise, network and connectivity recently helped attract a new auto parts manufacturing facility to a rail-ready site in South Carolina.
A SODECIA AAPICO joint venture late last year began constructing a $120 million, 400,000-square-foot plant in Orangeburg. The facility will be located in the 380-acre Tri-County Global Industrial Site, which offers direct NS service and connections to major transportation corridors.
Construction is expected to conclude in 2027, with production pegged to start in March 2028.
On Dec. 8, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new auto parts plant. The event was attended by officials from SODECIA, AAPICO, NS, Scout Motors, the South Carolina Department of Commerce, and city and county of Orangeburg.SODECIA AAPICO joint ventureSODECIA and AAPICO — both of which are family-owned, global automotive manufacturers — are combining their capabilities to produce ladder frames in Orangeburg for Scout Motors Inc. A U.S. subsidiary of German automaker Volkswagen, Scout Motors manufactures electric trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs).
Access to an NS REDI Sites Program property made the location a top contender for advanced automotive manufacturing, SODECIA and AAPICO officials say.
The new plant is a major win for South Carolina’s fast-growing automotive supply chain. NS has forged valuable partnerships with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to support their growth via long-term investments for rail logistics, said Alex Luc, NS group vice president of international intermodal and automotive, in an email.
“The state has solidified its status as a national automotive powerhouse through historic investments, expanding export leadership and robust manufacturing infrastructure — especially in electric vehicles and batteries,” he said. “Over the next five years, OEMs like BMW and Scout Motors plan to greatly expand electric vehicle capacity, while South Carolina’s supplier base, workforce systems and energy/tech ecosystems are expected to power further growth in advanced, sustainable automotive manufacturing.”
NS also will serve a new Scout Motors electric vehicle plant in Blythewood, South Carolina, starting in 2027. The Class I will move inbound parts and outbound finished vehicles.Norfolk Southern RailwayAutomotive is a top driver of the state’s economy, supporting about 154,900 jobs and $18.4 billion in gross state product. Auto-related manufacturing plants and suppliers account for over half of the jobs, Luc said.
In terms of capital investments and facility expansions, more than $27 billion has been invested in auto-related manufacturing and supply since 2017, with $4.3 billion focused on vehicle, electric vehicle (EV) and battery plants in 2023 alone, he said.
South Carolina is fourth nationally in regional EV manufacturing employment. As of mid-2025, EV/battery-related investments in the state totaled $13.3 billion.
To that end, Scout Motors is building a $2 billion plant in Blythewood that is scheduled to start production in 2027. To be served by NS, the plant will produce about 200,000 electric trucks and SUVs per year.
The railroad will transport inbound parts and outbound finished vehicles in multilevel rail cars, Luc said.
Other auto facility development in South Carolina includes BMW’s $1 billion assembly plant expansion in Spartanburg and $700 million battery assembly plant in Woodruff that opened in 2022.
The Spartanburg plant now is BMW’s largest manufacturing facility in the world, assembling the majority of the Bavarian automaker’s SUVs. BMW also opened a $200 million press shop in Spartanburg in 2024.
The automaker relies heavily on NS to move various parts into the Spartanburg plant and transport finished vehicles from the facility to various destinations, including to the Port of Charleston for export.
Meanwhile, Redwood Materials in late 2022 chose a Charleston site for its $3.5 billion battery recycling plant. And in 2023, Mercedes-Benz Vans began producing the eSprinter in North Charleston while Japan’s Envision AESC — a BMW supplier — announced plans to build a more than $800 million EV battery cell plant in Florence County.
