The BlueOval SK plants are expected to create 7,000 jobs in Tennessee, KentuckyKentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaks during the official announcement in 2021 of two electricWASHINGTON — The U.S. Energy Department plans to lend up to $9.2 billion to a joint venture ofThe conditional commitment for the low-cost government loan for the BlueOval SK joint venture comes from the government's Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loan program.
SK is a unit of South Korea's SK Innovation. The joint venture is building three battery manufacturing facilities in Kentucky and Tennessee capable of collectively producing more than 120 gigawatt hours annually, the Energy Department said. Jigar Shah, head of the Energy Department's Loan Programs Office, said in an interview its goal"is to have people choose to put these supply chains here in the United States, not in other countries, and to do them faster and more confidently here."The plants will displace more than 455 million gallons of gasoline per year for the lifetime of the vehicles powered by the batteries they manufacture.
"Major technology transitions have always been accelerated by collaboration between the public and private sectors," said Ford Treasurer Dave Webb. BlueOval SK CEO Robert Rhee said the loan will be used to"strengthen critical domestic supply chains, and produce high-quality batteries for future Ford and Lincoln