TOKYO -- Japan's Toray Industries will build a European plant to make parts for lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, part of a 120 billion yen ($1.08 billion) spending plan through around 2020 that comes as the world gears up to leave fossil-fuel cars behind.
The materials giant's factory will produce separators -- films that partition batteries' positive and negative electrodes to prevent short circuits. Toray is the world's No. 2 maker of separators behind Japanese compatriot Asahi Kasei.
