TUSCALOOSA, Ala.—Mercedes-Benz AG opened its first U.S. electric vehicle (EV) battery factory on Tuesday and said Japanese battery maker Envision AESC would supply battery modules for U.S.-made Mercedes EVs from a new U.S. plant by the middle of the decade. Alongside the launch of its Bibb County, Alabama battery plant, Mercedes also previewed a large electric SUV to be built at the nearby Tuscaloosa, Alabama assembly facility this year. The EQS SUV and a smaller EQE electric SUV, also to be made in Alabama, join a growing line-up of electric SUVs seeking to challenge Tesla in the United States, China and Europe. The battery plant, which will employ 600 workers, and the assembly facility are part of a 40 billion euro ($44 billion) drive by Mercedes to go all electric by 2030, where markets allow. Mercedes, which plans to produce EV batteries in Europe, North America and Asia, aims to …