Japanese battery giant AESC carried out its groundbreaking ceremony on a 30 GWh electric vehicle battery factory in Florence County, South Carolina, which will supply the German automaker BMW.
According to the press release, AESC US Managing Director Jeff Deaton and other local officials, such as Governor Henry McMaster and Secretary of Commerce Harry Lightsey, were present at the special event.
About the project
The development of the 1.5 million-square-foot battery production plant is now officially ongoing.
The company expects the battery factory to hit full capacity in 2026.
Most notably, the planned battery format will enable 20% higher energy density than the company’s current generation batteries. It also offers a lessened charging period and an improved range and efficiency of 30%
Moreover, the $800 million battery factory will generate 1,170 local job opportunities.
Governor Henry McMaster expressed his delight with AESC’s significant investment in the state, which he believes would aid the county’s electric vehicle uptake.
“Today, South Carolina is proud to celebrate AESC as the company embarks on a historic chapter in our state. Florence County has been ripe for an investment of this magnitude — one that will transform local communities and create generational wealth for South Carolinians. The groundbreaking for AESC’s battery cell gigafactory is a landmark moment in the evolution of South Carolina’s rapidly expanding electric vehicle industry.”
Governor Henry McMaster
This new factory in Florence County expands AESC’s current battery production network in the US. It currently operates a battery factory in Tennessee and is developing another one in Kentucky.
“This groundbreaking marks another major milestone in AESC’s commitment to investing in South Carolina and manufacturing electric vehicle batteries.
AESC continues to be a global leader in developing next-generation EV battery technology, and we’re proud to be further growing our capacity to build those products in US facilities, accelerating the transition to clean energy transportation.”
Jeff Deaton, AESC US Managing Director
See Also:
- US: Envision AESC aims for 70 GWh of annual battery production
- Market Size for passenger xEV batteries worldwide in the first half of 2022: 195.5 GWh (Up 79%)
- The 10 biggest EV battery manufacturers in the World as of 2022
- BMW announces $1.7 billion investment to produce electric vehicles in the US
- Redwood Materials to build $3.5 billion battery factory in South Carolina
As mentioned, the AESC Florence would support the company’s multi-year collaboration with Germany’s BMW Group, which was formed in October 2022.
Therefore, the power battery giant will ensure BMW’s supply of innovative battery cells for the next-generation Spartanburg plant-produced BMW cars.
