Officials: Work on battery plant continuing despite reports of halt
Published 6:00 am Sunday, June 22, 2025
Officials said work is continuing on the $2 billion AESC battery plant in Bowling Green, despite a June 17 story in the Wall Street Journal that claimed construction had been halted.
“AESC remains fully committed to delivering 2,000 jobs and investing $2 billion in the Bowling Green facility. As we have said previously, we are continuing to move forward with infrastructure improvements on site,” company spokesman Brad Grantham told the Daily News.
AESC (Automotive Energy Supply Corp.) is a Japan-based company that manufactures batteries for electric vehicles. According to its website, the company has supplied batteries to carmakers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Honda and Nissan.
The company broke ground on its Bowling Green facility in August 2022 in a ceremony attended by company officials, local government representatives and Gov. Andy Beshear. The 3-million square foot facility is expected to eventually employ 2,000 people.
Construction was paused on a similar AESC facility near Florence, South Carolina, earlier this month. The South Carolina facility is expected to employ 1,600 people once it opens.
Grantham told the Daily News then that despite the pause on that facility, infrastructure work was moving ahead on the location in Bowling Green.
Bowling Green Mayor Todd Alcott was quoted in the Journal’s story:
“ ‘A grand opening, a ribbon-cutting — we were supposed to be there at this point,’ said Todd Alcott, mayor of the 72,000-person Kentucky city. ‘We are not there.’ ”
Speaking to the Daily News, Alcott said his words were misconstrued by the Journal.
“He didn’t write what I stated to him,” Alcott said.
The Bowling Green plant was expected to start some functions in 2025 and go fully operational by 2027.
Alcott told the Daily News that while EV batteries are still a focus for the facility, the company is pivoting toward producing some energy storage solutions as well.
“Their spokespeople have told us that they’re 100% on board,” Alcott said. “They’re trying to recalibrate for energy storage, and that takes a minute to do. It’s not abandoning batteries for vehicles, but it’s trying to adjust to the market’s needs.”
The Journal article said some sources indicated work on the Bowling Green plant was halted.
Alcott said he was misrepresented for his part.
“That’s not what he wrote,” the mayor said. “That’s what I told him, and he’s simply speculating his own story, his own narrative.”
About Jack Dobbs
Jack covers city government for the Daily News. Originally from Simpson County, he attended Western Kentucky University and graduated in 2022 with a degree in journalism.
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