CHRISTIAN COUNTY, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – After several years of on and off construction and continually reassuring local officials, Ascend Elements no longer owns Apex 1 in Christian County. The Southwestern Kentucky Economic Development Council briefly discussed next steps during their June 29 meeting.
This past spring, the President & CEO of Ascend announced that the company voluntarily initiated a Chapter 11 process, initially stating that their Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville would not be impacted. SWK EDC Executive Director Carter Hendricks confirmed that Turner-Kokosing Joint Venture purchased the facility in a bid process shortly after they filed for bankruptcy.
Work had been paused for an extended period of time at Apex 1 leading up to the sale, with evidence of construction and overgrown brush visible at their John Rivers Road location. In October of 2025, just over 50% of the total investment was put into the facility, with strides mostly made on the exterior.
New owners plan to sell
Hendricks said they have already established communication with the new owners of Apex 1, “They are actively, aggressively trying to find someone that can come in and get that space and build it out and turn it into an operating facility, just like we all want, that creates jobs and opportunity.”
The joint venture company that purchased the facility is a partnership between Turner Construction and Kokosing Industrial, which were both building the plant and were involved in a lawsuit with Ascend that previously halted construction. They paid a $31.7 million bid for the facility in early June, according to reports from Industrial Info Resources
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The one million square foot battery plant facility broke ground in 2022 and originally planned to be operational by 2025 with a total investment reaching upward of $1 billion. At the time, Gov. Andy Beshear said it would make history as the largest development project in Christian County and the largest investment in Western Kentucky.
History of Ascend in Hopkinsville
The chemical plant was intended to create the chemical compound that is inside batteries (pCAM) by transforming black matter. The Apex 1 facility would potentially produce enough pCAM to equip 250,000 EVs per year. Estimated to bring around 400 jobs to Christian County, this project saw multiple delays and construction pauses over the years, with little information offered up by Ascend officials.
In 2024, Ascend established ties in the community by partnering with CCPS on the MLK Inspire Early Learning Center, and in their workforce development. They also had talks with Hopkinsville Community College to help recruit and train students for chemical plant operations.
In 2024 the Hopkinsville City Council approved revenue bonds to Ascend Elements Inc. to the amount of $565 million. The city was assured that this investment would not put them at financial risk and Ascend would be responsible to repay the obligation in a worst-case scenario.
Further down the road the U.S. Department of Energy also discontinued a $316 million grant, causing a loss of around $100 million as a result.
Hendricks said they will continue to stay in contact with new leadership and will provide more updates when available.
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