MARSHALL, Mich. — Ford announced on Monday that it has paused construction plans on the electrical vehicle (EV) battery plant in Marshall.
The company says the pause will remain in effect until they are certain they can run the plant in a competitive manner. No final decisions regarding the plant have been reached.
This comes after a group opposing the plant, named the Committee For Marshall Not the Megasite, filed a lawsuit against the city this summer, saying community members should vote on whether they approve of the plant’s construction.
"I'm sure we didn't scare them off just yet. But it might be a concern of theirs that may, or maybe the people don't really want this in this area," group leader for the Committee For Marshall Not the Megasite, Regis Klingler, told FOX 17. "It was unexpected. We'll take it as a small victory. We're not sure, sure. It's not the end of the battle."
Prior to the lawsuit, the group collected more than 800 signatures to get the motion on the ballot. City officials say that not enough of those signatures were valid.
The UAW is on strike against Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis. The union strike is now on its 11th day, first targeting one vehicle assembly plant from each automaker.
Last week, their efforts expanded to parts warehouses. Ford was spared from the expansion because the union says there was progress in negotiations.
The company has commented that this site was meant to bring in 2,500 hundred jobs. The factory was set to start making batteries in 2026, with an expected output of enough energy cells to supply 400,000 vehicles a year.
The state had allocated nearly $1.7 billion in incentives for the project.
Following Monday’s announcement, Republican Representative Sarah Lightner, whose district covers parts of Calhoun County, issued a statement:
“Gov. Whitmer threw $1.7 billion in taxpayer dollars at Ford to bring its new EV plant to Marshall, but even that wasn’t enough to make the company turn a blind eye toward the anti-business climate the Democrat majority has created. Their far-left policies put more red tape and higher costs on businesses. The extreme energy mandate they’re currently pushing will raise costs even further while leaving large manufacturers like Ford worried about blackouts affecting their bottom line. If this keeps up, Michigan workers will pay the price as industries suffer and opportunities vanish.
“Gov. Whitmer was insistent on paying a premium to land the Ford project. Now that it’s falling through, I hope she’s just as adamant about making sure any tax dollars already paid out are returned to the state. This situation is exactly why claw-back provisions and other safeguards were built into the process when the Legislature set up the SOAR fund in 2021. I will continue to monitor the situation closely and seek answers about the status of state funding allocated to the Marshall Area Economic Development Alliance for site prep.”
A spokesperson with Governor Whitmer's office sent us this statement.
“Michigan is home to world-class automakers whose iconic vehicles are built by the best auto workers in the world – and the governor is committed to keeping it that way. That’s why we’ve been aggressively pursuing deals that support working men and women, while also bringing supply chains back home from overseas for the first time and securing record-breaking investment that will guarantee jobs for decades. Ford has been clear that this is a pause, and we will continue to push for successful negotiations between the Big 3 and UAW so that Michiganders can get back to work doing what they do best.”
FOX 17 did reach out to Marshall City manager for their statement on this development and is still awaiting to hear back on that.
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