Clayco, Inc. has filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the owner of a planned $1.6 billion electric vehicle battery production facility in South Carolina, alleging nonpayment for work done before the project was suspended more than a year ago.
Japan-based AESC broke ground in June 2023 at the initial 1.5 million square foot manufacturing facility in an industrial park in Florence, SC, with Clayco’s Greenville, SC office and Lamar Johnson Collaborative providing design and construction services. Six months later, AESC announced that the project would be expanded to support expected growth in electric vehicle production at BMW’s nearby assembly plant in Spartanburg, SC. The facility’s operations were to begin in 2027.
In June 2025, citing market and federal policy uncertainty that had reportedly slowed funding, AESC suspended the project with the facility approximately 75% complete. Despite AESC’s public statements that it remains committed to resuming work, the project remains inactive.
A Clayco spokesman says that while AESC has made partial payments on more than $1 billion of existing work, a balance of $26.2 million is still owed to the construction team.
Clayco CEO Anthony Johnson said in a statement that its contract with AESC has not been terminated, nor has the company received any complaints about its performance.
“AESC’s breach of its commitments has caused significant financial harm to subcontractors and Clayco, including substantial lost opportunities,” Johnson said, adding that the company has used its own funds to pay its subcontractors in full, including demobilization costs, to protect the project and the construction community. “We intend to recover every dollar owed through all available legal remedies.”
AESC did not respond to ENR’s request for comment.
Meanwhile, Florence City Council has completed water and sewer improvements to the industrial estate that were to support the AESC manufacturing complex. Local officials have expressed hope that the new infrastructure will attract other businesses to the area if the AESC project is scaled back or canceled.
