$150 million aluminum facility breaks ground in Bowling Green

Will supply parts to major automakers; expected to create 80 new jobs

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (July 2, 2014) — Gov. Steve Beshear today joined company officials and local leaders to break ground on a $150 million aluminum production facility in Bowling Green. The facility, which is a partnership between Constellium and UACJ Corporation,  is expected to create 80 new jobs.

The plant will produce finished aluminum body sheets for cars and trucks and will supply these parts to the country’s major automotive manufacturers.

Construction on the 225,000 square foot facility at the Kentucky Transpark will start this summer.

Constellium, a European aluminum company, and UACJ, a Japanese aluminum company, both will supply the aluminum coils that will then be treated and processed in Bowling Green.

Tri-Arrows Aluminum, which is headquartered in Louisville, will be one of the key suppliers of cold rolled aluminum coils to the new partnership. The subsidiary of UACJ manufactures its base aluminum coils at its joint-venture operating mill at Logan Aluminum Inc., located in Russellville. Logan is one of south central Kentucky’s largest employers with more than 1,000 full-time employees.

In the past year, the state’s aluminum industry has accounted for nearly $300 million in corporate investments. The industry as a whole employs more than 17,000 Kentuckians.

The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $4.5 million through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.

KEDFA also approved the company for tax benefits up to $1.5 million through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act, which allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development and electronic processing equipment.