Solar PV and BESS firm Canadian Solar will build a BESS and cell manufacturing facility in Kentucky, in a factory which was recently vacated by metal-hydrogen battery company EnerVenue.
Canadian Solar will invest an initial US$384 million into the lithium-ion battery cell and battery energy storage system (BESS) manufacturing factory at 140 Logistics Drive, Shelby County.
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The first phase investment will total 3GWh of annual production capacity although the company has not revealed if that is split between cells and BESS. A phase two expansion to 6GWh of capacity bringing the total investment to US$712 million is also planned, with Colin Parkin, president of Canadian Solar’s e-Storage BESS subsidiary, saying this would happen ‘relatively quickly’ though no firm timeline was revealed.
Canadian Solar was founded in Canada and is listed on the Nasdaq Canada, but its manufacturing and majority of its management team are in China.
The investment is being made through its e-Storage subsidiary which currently manufactures BESS in China for deployment largely (to-date) in North and South America, the UK and Australia. The subsidiary’s VP commercial Jeff Roy alluded to the possibility of manufacturing cells as part of a US domestic content strategy in an interview earlier this year (Premium access).
The plant was announced in a ceremony at the residency of Kentucky governor Andy Beshear, with Shelby County judge executive Dan Ison, Shelbyville mayor Troy Ethington and Canadian Solar CEO Shawn Qu and Parkin also in attendance.
EnerVenue vacated site because of production delays
The site in Shelby County is the same one which was initially being constructed to house the first large-scale manufacturing plant from metal-hydrogen battery firm EnerVenue, announced in March 2023 with an expected 1GWh initial annual production capacity. The firm claims a 30,000-cycle lifetime for its technology, much higher than lithium-ion.
However, local outlet Louisville Business First revealed last month that the EnerVenue project in Shelby was on hold. Although the Canadian Solar announcement did not mention it is the same site, EnerVenue and the Kentucky government confirmed the change in tenant to Energy-Storage.news in response to requests for comment.
Production delays related to a change in product strategy ultimately led to the decision, EnerVenue said, though it still has plans to scale in the US as the spokesperson explained.
“Since the factory announcement, EnerVenue made the decision to accelerate the development of a fourth generation of its Energy Storage Vessel, rather than bring a prior version to scale. The new vessel will bring significant performance and cost benefits, but it delayed our production schedule. With that change, our timeline no longer matched with the Logistics Drive site, so the company declined to take ownership of that building,” they said.
“EnerVenue is currently focused on demonstrating the manufacturability of its newest technology via a first-of-its-kind manufacturing demonstration line. Once that line is ramped, the company plans to scale manufacturing in the US. Our partners in Kentucky have been very supportive throughout this process, helping us navigate the infrastructure, policy, and regulatory processes required to build a plant. Although we cannot provide a firm timetable, we expect to remain engaged so that when the timing is right, we can renew our coordination.”
A spokesperson for the Kentucky government said it was ready to re-engage with the company if it decided to invest in the state again: “Through our communications with EnerVenue’s leadership, it is our understanding the proposed project in Shelby County is currently on hold. We will be ready to re-engage with the company if they make the decision to move forward with an investment in the commonwealth with the benefits that come with locating in Kentucky, from a dedicated workforce to a thriving supply chain to a growing network of advanced technology manufacturers locating here.”
Second major production facility to change hands in US since Trump election
The news represents the second major manufacturing facility to change hands in the US, after Freyr acquired a solar module manufacturing plant from Chinese solar PV giant Trina Solar. That was announced the day after Trump won the US presidential election, leading some to suggest it was directly related to the fear of more measures against Chinese companies in the country’s clean energy sector.
The switch from EnerVenue to Canadian Solar is noteworthy as it is almost the inverse situation. Canadian Solar has the majority of its workforce and manufacturing in China, and East Asia more broadly, while EnerVenue is a US-founded company.
