Why some are calling Kentucky the ‘new gigafactory capital of the U.S.’ after latest project
Wednesday’s announcement that a $2 billion, 2,000-job electric vehicle battery plant is coming to Bowling Green follows at least two other big Kentucky project announcements in recent months tied to electric vehicles and the auto industry.
“The addition of this new facility will make Kentucky the new gigafactory capital of the U.S., well positioned to meet the forecasted growth of EVs and attract future investment,” Envision AESC U.S. Managing Director Jeff Deaton said during Wednesday’s announcement.
“We’re not only an automotive state, but we’ve secured our future,” Gov. Andy Beshear said last year after two previously announced big projects tied to electric vehicles.
Here are details on the three Kentucky projects announced since last fall:
▪ Envision AESC, a Japanese electric vehicle battery company, plans to power up to 300,000 vehicles per year by 2027 at a 512-acre site in Bowling Green. Plans call for a $2 billion, 2,000-job electric vehicle battery plant.
The plant will be the second largest private investment in Kentucky’s history, Beshear said.
A press release from the governor’s office said that a package of state incentives worth up to $116.8 million would be provided as well as $5 million in workforce training aid.
▪ In September, Kentucky landed its single largest economic development project in state history, a $5.8 billion investment by Ford Motor Corp. and South Korea-based SK Innovation to build two battery manufacturing plants in Glendale in Hardin County that are expected to employ 5,000 people.
The first plant is expected to open in 2025 and the second would follow in 2026. That project will be about 80 miles from the Envision project announced Wednesday.
The state offered multiple incentives for that project, including: A performance-based, forgivable loan of up to $250 million; conveyance of the 1,551-acre property off I-65 in Glendale to the joint venture; and job training worth up to $36 million through the Kentucky Community and Technical College System and the Bluegrass State Skills Corporation.
▪ In October, Toyota announced a new $460.8 million expansion of its Georgetown manufacturing plant, already the company’s largest in the world. Plans announced at the time called for a major update that will expand the plant’s “ability to produce new products, including future electrification.” The plant has made hybrid electric vehicles since 2006.
Georgetown has already been announced as the site for assembling fuel cell modules for use in hydrogen-powered heavy-duty commercial trucks starting in 2023, according to the release. The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority approved an additional $22.5 million in potential tax incentives, up to $212.5 million for the proposed project.
Note: This article has been updated to note that the new Envision plant in Bowling Green would be the second largest private investment in Kentucky’s history, according to state officials.
This story was originally published April 13, 2022 at 12:34 PM.