South Korea-based LOTTE Chemical Plans Elizabethtown, Kentucky, manufacturing center
LOTTE Aluminum Materials USA, based in South Korea, will set up an aluminum sheet manufacturing plant in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The $238.7 million project is expected to create 122 jobs in Hardin County.
The facility, a joint venture between LOTTE Chemical and LOTTE Aluminum, will be located on 40 acres in the TJ Patterson Industrial Park and will be the company’s first aluminum foil plant in the United States. Operations are scheduled for 2025.
“We will do our best to develop and support the technology so that we can stably produce high-quality, high-yield cathode sheets to meet customers one step at a time,” said Kim Gyo Hyun, President and CEO. from the management of LOTTE Chemical.
To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) in May approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment Program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $3.3 million in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $238.7 million and annual goals to create and maintain performance. 122 full-time jobs in Kentucky over 10 years; and pay an average hourly wage of $23.35 including benefits for these jobs.
Additionally, KEDFA has approved LOTTE for up to $1 million in tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act (KEIA). KEIA allows licensed companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development, and electronic processing.
By achieving its annual objectives over the term of the agreement, the business may be eligible to retain a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company can claim eligible incentives against its income tax and/or employee contributions. Additionally, LOTTE may receive resources from Kentucky Labor Service Providers. These include free recruitment and placement services, personalized training at reduced cost, and job training incentives.
“I welcome LOTTE to Kentucky as we continue to see significant investment from electric vehicle-related companies across the state,” Governor Andy Beshear added. “Continued growth in this sector will require attracting a wide range of vendors, and this announcement from LOTTE means just that. We are building an ecosystem that will last for generations to come, and I am pleased to report that this business will be a very important part of that vision.
The facility will produce 36,000 tons of cathode foil, a type of ultra-thin aluminum foil that is a base material used in electric vehicle batteries. The cathode foil is one of the four major components of lithium-ion batteries and supports the active material of the cathode which determines the capacity and voltage of the secondary battery, and at the same time serves as a passage for electrons.
“Amid recent announcements of large-scale industrial development in the Elizabethtown-Hardin County area over the past year, there has been much discussion regarding upcoming ancillary projects in the area,” said Matt Hess, Chairman of the Board of the Elizabethtown-Hardin County Industrial Foundation. . “This announcement proves that there is a lot of truth to the claim that our industrial sector will only grow in the years to come.”
LOTTE Aluminum and LOTTE Chemical are subsidiaries of the LOTTE Group, one of South Korea’s largest conglomerates, with over 90 business units employing over 80,000 people. The LOTTE Group serves a wide range of industries, including hospitality, financial services, food manufacturing, entertainment, industrial chemicals and aluminum manufacturing, among others.
