Braidy Industries settles suit with founder. What’s next for aluminum mill start-up?

Braidy Industries, which has long promised to build a $1.7 billion aluminum mill near Ashland, has settled a civil lawsuit filed by founder and former CEO Craig Bouchard, who is no longer a board member of the company.

In January, Braidy Industries released a statement saying Bouchard had stepped down. The next day, Boachard said he had not relinquished his position, but Braidy Industries continued to say Bouchard was removed as the CEO and chairman, though he remained on the board of directors.

Bouchard sued Braidy Industries in February for his removal, which he alleged could jeopardize hundreds of millions dollars of investments.

A spokesperson with Braidy Industries said at the time that the company “was not pleased with the status of financing for the mill in Boyd and Greenup counties, and has other concerns regarding his performance as CEO.”

Braidy Industries filed a suit in February as well, alleging Bouchard misspent about $330,000 on travel and meal expenses for himself, chartered unauthorized private planes and awarded himself bonuses, against the company’s policy.

As part of the settlement, Bouchard stepped down from the board of directors and is no longer involved in the company in any capacity, according to a press release from the company on Tuesday.

Charles Price will lead the company as chairman of the board, concentrating on raising funds and building the mill in north-east Kentucky. Tom Modrowski was appointed interim CEO of Braidy Industries in January but has since taken a job as CEO of Caparo Bull Moose, a St. Louis-based manufacturing and engineering firm. No replacement has been named.

The lawsuit, filed in Delaware, created a status quo order that required court approval or Bouchard’s consent for hiring a new CEO, so the company did not fill the CEO position permanently.

The start-up company announced plans in 2017 to build a $1.7 billion manufacturing facility at EastPark Industrial Center near Ashland. The aluminum mill is projected to generate more than 1,000 construction jobs, 550 full-time mill jobs and indirect jobs in the region.

“Braidy is much leaner, stronger and closer than ever to finalizing financing and building the mill in Ashland, KY,” Kaylee Carnahan Price, a spokesperson with Braidy Industries, said in an email Wednesday. “Aluminum market conditions continue to favor Braidy’s business model. COVID-19 put a renewed focus on ensuring America fills its own critical industrial supply chain infrastructure demands, including aluminum, rather than outsourcing it to international bad actors.”

In the release, the company stated the settlement allows Braidy’s board of directors “to accelerate plans to build the world’s most technologically advanced aluminum rolling mill at a time when global capacity is significantly constrained.”

Other terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Greenup County Judge-Executive Robert Carpenter said he was glad to see their differences settled, calling it “a good step in the right direction.”

He said he expects the company to make some announcements in the coming month.

“I’m Braidy’s No. 1. supporter and always have been,” Carpenter said.

State Sen. Robin Webb, D-Grayson, said she was appreciative of Bouchard stepping aside and letting the aluminum mill go forward.

She said the aluminum mill would be transformative for Eastern Kentucky. One goal is keeping college students and young people in the area and she believes the mill will do that.

Ashland Community and Technical College created a program to train students for employment at the mill and former Gov. Matt Bevin invested $15 million of taxpayer money into the struggling company.

Michael Tackett, the Advanced Integrated Technology program coordinator at the college, said the program continues to educate future Braidy Industries employees. Other companies, such as Toyota and Marathon, are interested in the training.

Webb said she remains hopefully optimistic.

“I just hope we can pull it off, even if it’s not at the same scale,” Webb said.

Tim Gibbs, president and CEO of Ashland Alliance, declined to comment on the settled lawsuit and what this development means for the community in a phone interview Wednesday. He said he hasn’t spoken directly with the company’s leadership.

This story was originally published June 11, 2020 at 10:22 AM.