Toyota on Wednesday said it plans to invest up to $10 billion in its U.S. manufacturing operations over the next five years.

Earlier this year, the Japanese automaker also pledged to invest $14 billion in an electric vehicle battery plant in Liberty, North Carolina, which the company said will create up to 5,100 new jobs. Production at the plant, Toyota's only such facility outside of Japan, began on Wednesday, the company said.

"Today's launch of Toyota's first U.S. battery plant and additional U.S. investment up to $10 billion marks a pivotal moment in our company's history," Ted Ogawa, CEO of Toyota Motor North America, said in a statement. "Toyota is a pioneer in electrified vehicles, and the company's significant manufacturing investment in the U.S. and North Carolina further solidifies our commitment to team members, customers, dealers, communities and suppliers."

The North Carolina plant will assemble batteries to power the Toyota Camry HEV, Corolla Cross HEV, RAV4 HEV, and an additional, yet-to-be-announced electric car model. Toyota also said the hub will provide on-site childcare, a pharmacy, medical clinic and fitness center for workers.

Toyota, which started making cars in the U.S. in the 1970s, has invested a total of roughly $60 billion in its American factories, according to the company.

Transportation Department Secretary Sean Duffy on Wednesday praised Toyota for moving to expand its footprint in the U.S.

"Toyota's move to expand production in North Carolina is the latest show of confidence in this administration's efforts to reshore manufacturing, generate new, great-paying jobs and inject billions of dollars into the economy," Duffy said in a statement.

Toyota's announcement comes after Mr. Trump said while on a trip to Japan that the automaker would invest $10 billion in the U.S.

The Trump administration has emphasized the importance of bolstering the country's domestic manufacturing sector, in part by imposing tariffs on U.S. trade partners and on certain industrial sectors, including automobiles.

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