CHRISTIAN COUNTY, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – Carter Hendricks with the Southwestern Kentucky Economic Development Council spoke to the Christian County Fiscal Court about the status of ongoing industrial developments, giving updates about the delay in construction at the Ascend Elements worksite, and recent progress of Kitchen Foods Co.
According to Hendricks, Toyota Boshoku has been smooth sailing since their groundbreaking in October 2023 and are set to have their grand opening on Dec. 9. This 365,000 square foot high tech facility will bring in 150 full time jobs. Containing advanced robotics for streamlined efficiency, this Japanese company will manufacture premium interior systems for vehicles and interior filtration and powertrain components in Hopkinsville.
He told the magistrates during the Sept. 9 meeting that there are currently 45 industries in just Christian County, with even more in nearby counties that employ local residents.
Kitchen Foods Co.
Australian company Kitchen Food Co. will be the largest industrial development in the state of Kentucky in over a decade. The $70 million development also comes with 900 jobs, with Gov. Andy Beshear previously praising the deal.
“I’m very excited to see them be successful here,” said Hedricks during the fiscal court meeting. He added that construction is ongoing mostly on the interior of the spec building that SWKEDC had built.
The company currently has a customer contract with ALDI and will be producing ready-made meals in the food processing industry. Hedricks expects that they will be operational within the year. Located near Krusteaz, the company will begin hiring this fall, ramping up in the spring of 2026.
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Ascend Elements
The Ascend Elements chemical plant in Hopkinsville will be creating the chemical compound that is inside batteries (pCAM) by transforming black matter. The Apex 1 facility will produce enough pCAM to equip 250,000 EVs per year.
Based off of information that the SWKEDC received in the last four week, Hendricks shared that there are currently around 20 employees on the current Ascend Elements worksite. After fast moving progress, construction was paused in spring due to a lawsuit. Hendricks was able to disclose that the ongoing legal proceeding is between the company and their general contractor.
They are hoping to get construction restarted by the end of this year and be back up at 400 employees by 2027. Ascend has already invested about $600 million into the facility, with a total investment of about $1 billion expected. Hedricks shared that the company has recently brought in additional investors, which is a good step forward to finishing construction.
“We remain cautiously optimistic for the future of the company and certainly optimistic that we are seeing investors maintain their commitment to the company,” said Hendricks to magistrates. “These are very, very smart wise investors who usually won’t chase money to lose money. So, we take that as a good sign.”
Ascend representative Mark Fern previously shared that the entire timeline for construction was just pushed back a year for Apex 1 and is estimated to be completed by the end of 2026. Once completed, they will generate about $4 million occupational taxes for the county, with $200 million in payroll already distributed to workers.
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