Community leaders gather to break ground for AESC Florence factory

Jun 09, 2023

Jeff Deaton, managing director, AESC US, shakes hands with Gov. Henry McMaster during a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday for the company's battery plant to be built across from Wilson High School.

Jeff Deaton, left, managing director, AESC US, and Gov. Henry McMaster laugh Wednesday morning as the governor presents him with a South Carolina flag during a groundbreaking ceremony for the new battery plant to be built across from Wilson High School.

Speakers at Wednesday's AESC groundbreaking ceremony were the first of several groups to don hard hats and turn earth.

FLORENCE, S.C. — "This is a momentous day in Florence County," said Florence County Council Chairman Willard Doriety during Wednesday morning's groundbreaking ceremony for AESC US's $800-plus-million-dollar, 1,170-jobs electric car battery plant to be built in Florence — across East Old Marion Highway from Wilson High School.

"Today we’re not just breaking ground, we’re breaking barriers, forging new paths and creating a brighter future for sustainable energy right here in Florence," said Jeff Deaton, managing director for AESC US.

FLORENCE, S.C. -- Wilson High School's drum line Wednesday performed for the crowd gathered for the AESC ground breaking ceremony across from the school.

"When you look at transformational projects we have a number of them going on in our state. This is the largest in the Eastern Carolinas in the history of the Eastern Carolinas," said Gregg Robinson, CEO of Florence County Economic Development Partnership.

"This an incredible moment for our state because in just a few minutes we’ll put shovels in the ground and we’ll begin this state's statement that it is part of the transformation of the automobile industry into the future," said Henry Lightsey, secretary of commerce . "We are truly excited about the future of South Carolina in this industry and excited for Florence as you become part of the automobile story in South Carolina."

FLORENCE, S.C. -- "This is a momentous day in Florence County," said Florence County Council Chairman Willard Doriety during Wednesday morning's groundbreaking ceremony for AESC US's $800-plus-million-dollar, 1,170-jobs electric car battery plant to be built in Florence -- across East Old Marion Highway from Wilson High School.

"It's all about the people. It's always about the people," said Gov. Henry McMaster of industrial development in South Carolina.

McMaster also spoke of the need to not only maintain an educated work force but to grow it as well and called out Tim Hardy of the state's community college system as well as Dr. Fred Carter, president of Francis Marion University as two people who will work to ensure it happens.

"If it's going to happen anywhere in the country it's going to happen here first and it's going to happen fast," McMaster said of industrial development.

"We have so much potential. I want you to know this is just the beginning. We are going to move Florence forward," said Florence Mayor Teresa Myers Ervin of the plant.

FLORENCE, S.C. -- Wilson High School's cheerleaders Wednesday morning performed at the groundbreaking for AESC's new battery plant to be built across from the school.

Once completed the factory, which will be supplied with 100% renewable energy, will dwarf its surroundings.

"This plant will be 8.8 times bigger than Wilson High School," Robinson said of the facility which will be built on about 500 acres of a 900 acre industrial campus that will stretch from Estate Road east to S.C. 327 where, what was planned to be a small industrial park, will become the main entrance to the campus.

"At full buildout we’ll be pulling more water from the City of Florence than the Niagara bottling plant that bottles water," Robinson said of of the bottled water plant in the industrial park on S.C. 327 at Interstate 95.

AESC's plant will manufacture batteries for BMW's electric vehicles to be made in the Upstate.

Robinson and a host of state, Florence and Florence County dignitaries spoke to a standing-room-only crowd under a large tent on the site of the future plant. Site prep work which had been going on up to the ceremony stopped while the dignitaries spoke, Wilson High School cheerleaders cheered, Wilson's drum line performed and while a series of different dignitaries who wielded golden shovels turned dirt over and over again as cameras clicked.

Several themes flowed through the ceremony from the event being the first of many to come to teamwork.

Robinson said Wednesday's event didn't happen by accident but rather by city and county leaders who worked together as one supported by a host of others behind the scene who worked just as hard.

"We turned that stormwater permit around in less than a month and that's warp speed, we’re excited about that," Robinson said of one of the key items necessary to have gotten permission to build the factory.

While much hard work was completed on the front end, Robinson and others spoke of the importance of education in general and Florence-Darlington Tech and Francis Marion University in specific to train the workforce not only for now, but for future economic development.

Deaton said the decision to site the plant in Florence wasn't hard to make.

"South Carolina is home to 500 automotive companies and is the number one exporter of passenger vehicles and the number one producer of tires in the United States. Our decision to invest in South Carolina was an easy one," Deaton said. "The automotive sector in South Carolina already employs over 72,000 South Carolinians."

"The jobs we create here in Florence will further shape the region and serve as a hub of creativity," Deaton said.

And car batteries will be a future building part that is already becoming a stratetic resource, Deaton said.

"The U.S. is already experiencing double digit growth in electric vehicle sales. Here in Florence South Carolina we’re going to play a critical role in making them," Deaton said.

Visit https://us.envision-aesc.com/ to search available jobs in Florence.

Digital Editor Matt Robertson is a veteran journalist who has fulfilled just about every role that a newspaper has and now serves as a key member of the Morning News’ newsroom by maintaining SCNow.com and covering the occasional story and photo assignment.

Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter.

FLORENCE, S.C. — "This is a momentous day in Florence County," said Florence County Council Chairman Willard Doriety during Wednesday morning'…