Battery plant delays, a $528M Hitachi investment, Walls data center: Mississippi Marketplace

By Katherine Lin | Originally published by Mississippi Today

Production at the Amplify Cell Technologies battery plant in Marshall County, once slated for 2027, is delayed for an unspecified amount of time according to the companies behind the venture.

Announced in 2024, the $1.9-billion investment was expected to create 2,000 jobs. At the time, it was one of the state’s largest economic development projects. The Legislature passed an almost half-a-billion dollar economic incentive package for the company to cover things such as workforce training and site improvements. 

Amplify said that it is adjusting its production timeline and the Mississippi Development Authority said the company remains in compliance with its agreements for the state incentives. The company plans to complete construction on the facility this year but will not reach manufacturing capacity yet. The state has spent over $100 million on the project so far.

The manufacturing facility was supposed to produce batteries for commercial electric vehicles, but the Trump administration’s roll back of EV incentives has disrupted the market. Companies are still trying to adjust but experts say they expect the EV market to continue to grow. 

Trump administration helps announce new factory

On Tuesday, Gov. Tate Reeves alongside members of the Trump administration announced Hitachi Energy is investing over $500 million to build a transformer factory in Copiah County. 

Federal officials celebrated the company’s investment. They said that it is a part of the administration’s goal to make America the global leader in energy production and to bring back American manufacturing jobs. 

“This is about America’s determination to build the infrastructure to win the intelligence race, to power the next generation of American manufacturing and to bring prosperity and affordability to American citizens,” said U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, chairman of the National Energy Dominance Council.

More news

• General Atomics is investing $87 million in Shannon. This is the second expansion that the defense company has announced this year in Mississippi, bringing its total new investment in the state to $112 million. 
• Gov. Reeves announced over $104 million in federal money for projects to improve rural health care in the state. The money is from the federal Rural Health Transformation Program to aid rural hospitals across the country and in Mississippi as they face existential financial challenges. 
• Residents of Walls are wondering if a data center might be coming to their small town. A rezoning application to convert over 1,000 acres from agricultural to light industrial use is stirring up push back from some residents. Walls is not far from Southaven, where Elon Musk’s SpacexAI has generated national controversy over its data centers and power plant. 
• On Wednesday, the state House Select Committee on Property Tax met to discuss property taxes and the cost of car tags. Some legislators have said they want to find a way to reduce the tax burden on residents. But on Wednesday, the committee focused on gathering information on the fragmented system of property taxes and car tag collections across the state. 

This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Source: Original Article