Project Traits
State: Kentucky
Congressional District: KY02
Organization Type: Commercial
Partner Organization(s) Type: None or Unknown
Energy Sector: Transportation,
Energy Subsector: EV Batteries,
Project Start Year: 2021
Project Launch Year: 2025
Government Support Received: Unknown
Outcomes & Impacts
Private Investment: $5,800,000,000
Jobs Announced or Created: 5,000
People Served: Unknown
Projected Economic Impact: Unknown
Ford Motor Co. announced a huge, $5.8 billion plan Monday to build twin battery manufacturing plants in Hardin County, Kentucky, that will create 5,000 full-time jobs and power its future lines of electric vehicles. Gov. Andy Beshear called it a "planetary-size investment" that will create tons of spinoff jobs outside of the factories themselves and will open doors for the Bluegrass State in new markets.
The first of the two battery plants that will be built there is set to begin production in 2025, with the second online in 2026, according to Ford North America Chief Operating Officer Lisa Drake. All 5,000 jobs Ford expects to create through the twin plants in Glendale will be full-time positions, Drake said. The type of work people will be able to find there is "a great, modernized assembly job."
Ford and the state of Kentucky are collaborating on training programs that will prepare the skilled workforce that will be needed when the facilities open.