Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development

125 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 12 County. The transformational $5.8 billion project is set to create 5,000 jobs in the heart of the state and will be home to two battery plants to power the next generation of Ford and Lincoln electric vehicles. These major announcements are at the forefront of Kentucky’s newest key industry, and they also are generating additional investment and job creation from a growing supplier network made up of both new and existing Kentucky businesses. Additional projects from Ascend Elements and LOTTE Aluminum will further strengthen the state’s EV and automotive industry. Ascend Elements is investing up to $1 billion and creating more than 400 full-time jobs in Hopkinsville, where the company will recycle EV batteries and salvage reusable components for further battery production. LOTTE is located in Elizabethtown with a $238.7 million investment and creating 122 jobs to manufacture ultra-thin aluminum foil, which serves as a core material in lithium-ion batteries. Overall, the automotive industry employs more than 100,000 Kentuckians full time. Kentucky produces the iconic Chevrolet Corvette in Bowling Green, hosts two Ford assembly plants in Louisville and is home to the world’s largest Toyota manufacturing facility, located in Georgetown. Collectively, those facilities rank Kentucky as the No. 1 producer of passenger vehicles per capita in the nation, according to data provided by Automotive News. And the state’s automotive landscape encompasses far more, including 550- plus automotive suppliers, trailer and truck body makers and accessory and aftermarket equipment producers. Speed-to-Market Initiatives Aiding the state’s recent growth and sustained economic momentum has been the continued investment in site development initiatives. The commonwealth has taken an aggressive approach to the speed-to-