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Gov. Beshear visits Berea EV plant following expansion, job creation

Beshear talks with Hitachi Astemo officials during a tour of the Berea plant.
Shepherd Snyder
/
WEKU
Beshear (center-right) talks with Hitachi Astemo officials during a tour of the Berea plant.

Governor Andy Beshear visited electric vehicle manufacturer Hitachi Astemo’s plant in Berea Tuesday afternoon following a significant expansion to its operations in central Kentucky.

That includes 167 new jobs and a $153 million investment, which was announced last summer.

“Providing an extra 150, 160 jobs to Kentuckians is pretty special and something to celebrate, Beshear said. “We celebrated this company in 1987 and several times since, when it continues to expand and provide more opportunities for our people.”

Beshear said he hopes the expansion is indicative of similar investments in the state.

“We'll never be a flyover state ever again,” Beshear said. “We're the destination. That's pretty exciting. So that means our kids and grandkids are gonna have more opportunities than many of us ever thought was possible.”

Ground also broke earlier this year on the BlueOval SK plant in Hardin County, which manufactures batteries for electric vehicles.

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Shepherd joined WEKU in June 2023 as a staff reporter. He most recently worked for West Virginia Public Broadcasting as General Assignment Reporter. In that role, he collected interviews and captured photos in the northern region of West Virginia. Shepherd holds a master’s degree in Digital Marketing Communication and a bachelor’s in music from West Virginia University.
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