2023 Hoptown Chronicle | All rights reserved, the Ascend Elements plant that is under construction in Commerce Park II, Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, As worlds largest EV battery manufacturing site takes shape, historic Glendale hopes to retain small town identity, Barbecue restaurateur Mindy Hargrove is opening another eatery, Kentucky-based AppHarvest files for bankruptcy, Underground Railroad topic of next History on Tap, Hopkinsville-Christian County Newcomers and Neighbors sets annual open house. "Kentucky continues to position itself as the top EV-related manufacturing location in the country," Beshear said in a news release. Microvast To Locate Separator Facility in Kentucky With $504 Million Investment, Creating 562 Full-Time Jobs, Hopkinsville project will be worlds first mass production facility for cutting-edge polyaramid separator technology in EV batteries, Copyright 2023 Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development |, Old Capitol Annex 300 West Broadway | Frankfort, KY 40601 | 502 - 564 - 7670(local) | 800 - 626 - 2930(toll free), Kentucky Economic Development Partnership Board, lowest annual unemployment rate in state history. Gov. Microvast plans to invest $504 million to establish operations on a 100-acre site in Commerce Park II in Hopkins in a 350,000-square-foot building. This week, Gov. Microvast confirms it won't develop plant in Hopkinsville Jennifer P. Brown is the publisher, editor and co-founder of Hoptown Chronicle. Toyota Boshoku America, also called TBA, will build a 365,000-square-foot plant on a 49-acre parcel in South Park near the Walmart Distribution Center on Crenshaw Boulevard. (Hoptown Chronicle photo by Jennifer P. Brown). Upon completion, the plant is expected to have a capacity of 300 million square meters per year, or about 19 GWh. We are proud to partner with the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, City of Hopkinsville and Christian County to further that mission and celebrate this announcement together.. The governors office typically does not follow up to announce when large economic development projects fall through. And Barrasso told Granholm in a May 1 letter that Wu had bragged to Chinese media about Microvasts strong ties to the Peoples Republic of China.. Headquartered in Stafford, Texas, Microvast is a battery solutions provider recognized globally as an industry leader in lithium-ion battery innovation and technology. I am thrilled to welcome Microvast to Kentucky and look forward to their future success.. July 4, 2023. All rights reserved. Microvast EV battery plant in Hopkinsville in doubt after federal Mayor James R. Knight Jr., Christian County Judge-Executive Jerry Gilliam and South Western Kentucky Economic Development Council Executive Director Carter Hendricks each praised the Microvast and Toyota Boshoku America announcements. Microvast chooses Hopkinsville over Clarksville for 560-job electric Microvast to build Kentucky plant for EV battery components. The company has drawn down all of the grant money, which. To date, over 30,000 Microvast battery systems are in operation in 28 countries with over 6.9 billion miles of operational distance covered. Polyaramid is a high temperature-resistant, fire-retardant aromatic polyamide, which is commonly used in firefighting garments and insulating papers. The decision is expected to bring 287 new direct jobs in a $220 million investment to Montgomery County. Once again, the U.S. ranks as the top destination for foreign direct investment, followed by China and Canada, in the 2023 Global Rankings Report. Construction is expected to begin this year and be completed by March 2025. The plant will be the first TBA location globally to be considered a Smart Plant, the release states. In 2021, the commonwealth shattered every economic development record in the books. Ascend, projected to be a $1 billion facility, will produce lithium-ion materials for electric-vehicle batteries. The new operation, which will be Microvast's first in Kentucky, will locate in Commerce Park II in Hopkinsville and consist of a 350,000-square-foot building on 100 acres. Andy Beshears office announced in late March that Microvast had chosen Hopkinsville for construction of a 350,000-square-foot facility and would employ 562 workers. Microvast Holdings Inc. has announced it won't proceed with plans for a battery technology plant in Hopkinsville a project that would have brought a $504 million investment and more than 500 jobs to Commerce Park II. Microvast. Microvast will be constructed on a parcel of roughly 100 acres adjacent to, the Ascend Elements plant that is under construction in Commerce Park II. It must create and maintain 562 full-time jobs over 15 years for Kentucky residents, and it must pay an average hourly wage of $25, including benefits, across those jobs. Brown earned the Bachelor of Science in Journalism at Murray and the MFA in Creative Nonfiction at Goucher College, Baltimore. We expect the safety advantages of our innovative, highly thermally stable polyaramid separators to transform high-energy lithium-ion battery development and drive significant value for the industry, said Dr. Wenjuan Mattis, chief technology officer at Microvast. The campus, which will include a collaboration with General Motors, is expected to be funded in part by a $200 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as part of the recent Bipartisan Infrastructure Law intended to develop a North American-focused electric vehicle (EV) supply chain. The new operation will be Microvasts first in Kentucky, which will locate in Commerce Park II, in Hopkinsville and consist of a 350,000-square-foot building on 100 acres. The company is building battery plants in Kentucky and Tennessee and was in talks with the Energy Department for a $200 million grant funded through the 2021 infrastructure law. Or let it be? There are three TBA plants in Kentucky at Bardstown, Harrodsburg and Lebanon and the Hopkinsville plant will bring total employment in the state to 1,100. Or let it be? To build its expertise in all levels of the battery manufacturing supply chain, research centers in Europe, Asia and the United States have generated more than 630 patent applications (over 400 granted to date) on technology covering the anode, cathode, electrolyte, separator, battery cell design, battery module and pack, BMS and thermal management. by Jennifer P. Brown, Hoptown Chronicle, Kentucky Lantern July 5, 2023. "We are committed to creating an environment where the industries of the future can grow and thrive right here in the commonwealth, and Microvasts investment is a huge step toward that goal.". The same incentive for Toyota Boshoku America will be good for up to $500,000. The company said its proprietary technology produces separators that can withstand higher temperatures, which improves battery charging, range and lifespan. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics. Since June 2020, the commonwealth has seen over $10.5 billion in EV-related investments, with more than 9,700 full-time jobs announced. Also in Hopkinsville, Toyota Boshoku America Inc. (TBA) will invest more than $225 million to construct a new facility and create 157 jobs. In late May, the Biden administration canceled plans to award a $200 million grant to Microvast amid criticism from Republican lawmakers over the company's reported ties to China. The project is backed by a $200 million grant from the U.S. Department. Microvast is based in Stafford, Texas. Microvast Corporate Headquarters, Office Locations and Addresses - Craft Industrial Building Development New Construction - 3,448,800 SF Design $10,000,000 CJ est. Get Hopkinsville, KY updates delivered to you daily. April 03, 2023 11:56 AM. This material took over 10 years to develop internally and we believe it offers significant safety advantages compared to other polypropylene or polyethylene separator technology available today. Paying an average hourly wage of $25 including benefits across those jobs. The Governor has now secured the best two-year period in state history for economic growth. Last October, Ascend, a Massachusetts-based company, was approved for a $480 million Department of Energy grant for its Hopkinsville project. Kentucky has seen several notable investments in electric vehicle battery production in recent years, most notably the BlueOval SK Battery Park in Glendale. A press release from the governors office said construction will start this June and be completed in August 2024. Unlike the current widely used polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) based separators in lithium-ion batteries, which melt at approximately 135C and 165C, respectively, Microvasts patented polyaramid separator is capable of resisting temperatures in excess of 300C. Texas-based Microvast which designs, develops and manufactures lithium-ion battery solutions will establish operations in a 350,000-square-foot building on a 100-acre site in Commerce Park II in Hopkins. To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) on Thursday preliminarily approved a 15-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. Ascend, projected to be a $1 billion facility, will produce lithium-ion materials for electric-vehicle batteries. EV-related company plans $500 million facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics. This facility will help integrate the product into EV battery designs, including Microvasts cells as well as those of other third-party battery manufacturers. A press release issued Friday from the Texas-based company says the project is off "at least for now.". Microvast to locate separator facility in Kentucky with $504 million The material was part of a United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC) technical assessment project, which independently confirmed through U.S. National Labs the polyaramid separators specifications and positive impacts to device safety. Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: You have permission to edit this article. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. We are committed to creating an environment where the industries of the future can grow and thrive right here in the commonwealth, and Microvasts investment is a huge step toward that goal.. And in April 2022, the Governor was joined by leadership at Envision AESC toannouncea $2 billion investment that will create 2,000 jobs in Warren County. "And this separator basically increases that margin to safety to be able to extend the life of vehicles and range.". Polyaramid is a high temperature-resistant, fire-retardant aromatic polyamide, which is commonly used in firefighting garments and insulating papers. Construction will start in 2023 and wrap up in 2025, according to Gov.
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