General Motors has said it will spend US$325m on tools and equipment for its Warren Transmission plant in Michigan to support production of future electric vehicle components, creating or retaining 418 jobs.

The plant makes transmissions for the Chevrolet Traverse, Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia crossovers and the Chevrolet Malibu sedan.

The 2.1m square-foot plant, equivalent to the area of 15 city blocks, produced more than 338,000 transmissions in 2010.

Timing for the latest project was not disclosed.