American electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc. is teaming up with Japanese electronics company Panasonic Corp. to build a battery manufacturing plant in the U.S. expected to create 6,500 jobs.

The companies announced the deal Thursday, but they did not say where in the U.S. the so-called "gigafactory," or large-scale plant, will be built.

The plant will produce cells, modules and packs for Tesla's electric vehicles and for the stationary energy storage market, employing 6,500 people by 2020.