AESC pauses $1.6B EV battery plant in Florence County

This story was updated June 6 at 10 a.m.

Construction on a $1.6 billion plant in Florence County will pause because of “policy and market uncertainty,” according to a statement released through an international business services agency.

“AESC has informed the state of South Carolina and our local partners that due to policy and market uncertainty, we are pausing construction at our South Carolina facility at this time,” said a statement credited to AESC spokesperson Brad Grantham, who confirmed the statement in an email to SC Biz News. “AESC has invested over $1 billion into the Florence facility, and we anticipate being able to resume construction once circumstances stabilize.”

The South Carolina Department of Commerce was informed verbally that AESC will temporarily pause operations, according to an email from Alex Clark, deputy director of communications for Commerce.

“As South Carolina has always been, we are fully and unequivocally committed to supporting existing companies including AESC,” Clark said in the email.

The AESC statement said the pause does not signal an end to the project.

“AESC fully intends to meet our commitments to invest $1.6 billion and create 1,600 jobs in the coming years,” Grantham’s statement said.

In March 2024 AESC, a battery technology company, announced the expansion of its lithium-ion electric vehicle battery manufacturing operations in Florence County. That followed the company’s initial announcement in December 2022, resulting in a total commitment to invest $3.12 billion that would support 2,700 jobs in the local community, according to an announcement at the time from the office of Gov. Henry McMaster.

Operations were originally intended to be online by 2027. The statement released June 5 did not say how the pause would affect that target date.

As part of a multi-year partnership with BMW, AESC intends to supply technology-leading battery cells to be used in the next generation electric vehicle models produced at BMW Manufacturing’s Plant Spartanburg. This advanced battery format will result in 20% more energy density than the current generation, reduce charging time, and increase range and efficiency for electric vehicles by 30%, according to news from the South Carolina Department of Commerce.

BMW Manufacturing did not comment on AESC’s plan to pause but did respond by restating a pair of facts:

• BMW Manufacturing contracted AESC to supply cells to the new high-voltage battery assembly plant in Woodruff, South Carolina.
• BMW Group has invested $700 million in Plant Woodruff. The plant is scheduled to begin assembling high-voltage battery modules in 2026.

AESC is active globally in the development and manufacturing of high-performance batteries for zero-emission electric vehicles and energy storage systems.
Founded in Japan in 2007 and headquartered in Yokohama, AESC has been building manufacturing capabilities around the world in the United States, United Kingdom,  Europe, Japan and China.