"Electric Vehicle and Battery Ecosystem, Coming to Our Region: The Reason Behind the US State Government's 1 Trillion Won Investment"

SK and Ford Decide on Battery and Electric Vehicle Plants in Tennessee and Kentucky
Potential to Become a Hub for the US Mid-South Battery Ecosystem
Rising Battery Industry Ideal for Revitalizing Local Economy and Jobs

On the 28th (local time), Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky, USA, spoke at the announcement of the battery factory investment plan by SK Innovation and Ford.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] SK Innovation and Ford have decided to build electric vehicle battery factories in Kentucky and Tennessee in the United States. Initially, it was expected that Ohio or Georgia, where SK operates a battery plant independently, would be likely locations since Ford's vehicle assembly plants are concentrated in the northeastern area around Detroit. However, the mid-southern region was ultimately selected.

The Stanton plant in Tennessee, built by BlueOvalSK, a joint venture between SK and Ford, will have an annual production capacity of 43GWh. A factory assembling Ford's popular pickup truck electrification models will also be established there. Ford currently manufactures the F-150 at its Dearborn plant in Michigan and Kansas City plant in Missouri. The electric pickup truck to be released next year is currently produced at the Dearborn plant, but it is highly likely to become the main model at the new plant going forward.

BlueOvalSK, a joint venture between SK Innovation and Ford, plans to establish a battery plant in Kentucky with a target operation date of 2025.

Ford has named this site in western Tennessee "BlueOval City" and plans to establish not only the battery factory and electric vehicle assembly plant but also a research and development center and a training center for workforce education. Tennessee is also the location for the second plant of Ultium Cells, a joint venture between General Motors (GM) and LG Energy Solution. Ultium Cells is building its first plant (annual capacity 35GWh) in Ohio, and the second plant has been decided to be in Tennessee.

The Glendale plant of BlueOvalSK in central Kentucky will have an annual capacity of 86GWh (two units of 43GWh each) and covers about 1.9 million pyeong (approximately 6.27 million square meters). The site for the new plant was prepared over 20 years ago with federal government assistance to foster the battery industry, but no significant investments had been made until now. SK and Ford's recent decision is considered the largest industrial facility investment in Kentucky's history. Kentucky was not initially considered a major candidate for the SK-Ford joint venture but was ultimately selected as the site.

In May, U.S. President Joe Biden visited the Ford Dearborn plant. <이미지출처:연합뉴스>

Since Biden's Inauguration, Emphasis on "Battery Supply Chain Importance"
Intense Competition Among U.S. States to Attract Electric Vehicle and Battery Plants

As the Biden administration has expressed concerns about the battery supply chain's reliance on foreign imports and shown a commitment to domestic development, state governments are actively competing to attract battery and electric vehicle plants. According to local media, Tennessee has pledged $500 million in support to Ford for this investment plan, and the $410 million project incentives recently approved by the Kentucky legislature are also expected to be largely used for BlueOvalSK.

The amount directly supported by state governments to foster the electric vehicle ecosystem exceeds 1 trillion won. Considering that Ford and SK's investment scale is around 13 trillion won, this represents a robust side support. It is expected that the expansion of electric vehicle adoption will accelerate, and since batteries are increasingly used in various applications beyond vehicles, they are likely to become a major strategic industry. Therefore, this investment is seen as playing a significant role in revitalizing the local economy and increasing jobs.

Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky, described this investment as "a planetary-scale investment with its own gravity." This implies a high possibility that material and raw material suppliers or equipment companies supplying the large-scale battery plant will also establish operations there.

Prototype of Ford's electric pickup truck F-150 Lightning being assembled at the Dearborn plant in Michigan, USA

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.