A major Japanese battery maker has stopped construction on a $1.6 billion plant in South Carolina, citing “policy and market uncertainty” tied to electric vehicles and global trade.
Automotive Energy Supply Corp. (AESC) said Thursday it’s temporarily halting work on the factory in Florence, which is meant to supply batteries for electric BMWs made in the state.
The company didn’t list specific concerns, but South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster pointed to worries over changes to federal EV tax credits, incentives for clean energy businesses, and potential new tariffs under President Donald Trump.
“We’re urging caution,” McMaster said. “Let things play out — all these changes are happening at once.”
AESC has pledged to restart construction, though it hasn’t given a timeline. It says it will still meet its promise to hire 1,600 workers and invest $1.6 billion, and has already spent $1 billion on the site.
The Florence plant is meant to supply battery cells to BMW, which is building its own assembly plant nearby. BMW says the AESC delay won’t affect its timeline to open in 2026.
South Carolina had previously pulled back $111 million in planned incentives after AESC scaled down its original plans. But the company is still set to receive $135 million in grants and $121 million in state bonds.
The pause comes as other clean energy projects in the U.S. are also facing uncertainty tied to Trump’s trade stance. An earlier analysis found $14 billion worth of clean energy projects have been canceled nationwide.
Still, South Carolina continues to bet big on EVs. Scout Motors, owned by Volkswagen, plans to open a $2 billion plant in the state in 2027 to build electric SUVs.
Kharkiv faced its most intense assault since the war began, as Russia launched a deadly overnight attack using drones, missiles, and guided bombs.
While the world's attention is often captured by rising sea levels, another critical environmental crisis is unfolding beneath our feet: land subsidence.
The Asian Development Bank will grant nearly $1 million to upgrade Kyrgyzstan’s energy data system, with more large-scale energy investments in the pipeline.
After nearly a decade of talks, Indonesia and the European Union aim to finalize a free trade deal by the end of June.
Tensions are rising along the Thailand–Cambodia border as both nations reinforce their military presence following a deadly skirmish and failed de-escalation talks.
Kharkiv faced its most intense assault since the war began, as Russia launched a deadly overnight attack using drones, missiles, and guided bombs.
Mayo Clinic researchers have validated a blood test's high precision for diagnosing patients with cognitive impairment.This non-invasive, cost-effective breakthrough, detailed in Alzheimer's & Dementia, offers much-needed hope for earlier intervention and better management.
While the world's attention is often captured by rising sea levels, another critical environmental crisis is unfolding beneath our feet: land subsidence.
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to participate in the Ministerial Meeting of Coordinators on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and the opening ceremony of the Fourth China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo.
The Asian Development Bank will grant nearly $1 million to upgrade Kyrgyzstan’s energy data system, with more large-scale energy investments in the pipeline.
A bridge collapse in the Vygonichsky district of Russia’s Bryansk region, near the Ukrainian border, caused a train derailment and a traffic accident early Sunday, killing at least seven people and leaving 30 injured, according to emergency services.
Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) has confirmed it carried out a third targeted attack against the Crimean Bridge, also known as the Kerch Bridge, early Tuesday morning, marking a new escalation in the ongoing conflict with Russia.
A strong 6.3 magnitude earthquake shook Japan’s Hokkaido prefecture early Monday, causing no reported injuries or damage, and no tsunami warning was issued, officials confirmed.
Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine ended abruptly in Istanbul on Monday, lasting just over an hour amid mounting tensions following a major Ukrainian drone strike on Russian strategic bombers and renewed pressure from the U.S. for a breakthrough.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to speak this week to discuss recent trade tensions, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket carrying the SXM-10 satellite for SiriusXM early Saturday, marking another success despite rising political tensions.
Meta and Russian search engine Yandex have been secretly tracking what Android users do on their web browsers—even when users are in private or incognito mode—according to experts from Radboud University and IMDEA Networks.
A groundbreaking discovery about the mysterious Oort cloud, the outermost region of our solar system, has emerged from the creation of the American Museum of Natural History's new Hayden Planetarium show, "Encounters in the Milky Way."
China has successfully launched a new set of low Earth orbit satellites, continuing its ongoing space deployment efforts, according to state media.
Scientists have identified a long-lost group of hunter-gatherers who vanished from Colombia’s highlands 2,000 years ago, reshaping our understanding of ancient human migrations in South America.
Kharkiv faced its most intense assault since the war began, as Russia launched a deadly overnight attack using drones, missiles, and guided bombs.
Mayo Clinic researchers have validated a blood test's high precision for diagnosing patients with cognitive impairment.This non-invasive, cost-effective breakthrough, detailed in Alzheimer's & Dementia, offers much-needed hope for earlier intervention and better management.
While the world's attention is often captured by rising sea levels, another critical environmental crisis is unfolding beneath our feet: land subsidence.
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to participate in the Ministerial Meeting of Coordinators on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and the opening ceremony of the Fourth China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo.
The Asian Development Bank will grant nearly $1 million to upgrade Kyrgyzstan’s energy data system, with more large-scale energy investments in the pipeline.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment