Kentucky has maintained strong momentum in economic development during the first half of 2025, despite global volatility stemming from shifting trade policies, fluctuating financial markets, and declining consumer confidence. Local economic development leaders across the state report consistent levels of private investment, with some regions even observing increased activity, particularly in manufacturing and workforce development initiatives.
One of the most significant recent investments comes from Haier US Appliance Solutions, which is committing $490 million to modernize GE Appliance Park in Louisville. The project will enhance production capabilities using cutting-edge machinery to manufacture high-demand laundry appliances for American households. The expansion is expected to create 800 new positions, adding to the site’s current workforce of 7,200 employees. Haier, a Chinese company, chose to expand in Kentucky over competing states including South Carolina, Alabama, and Tennessee, citing the site’s long-standing expertise and established infrastructure.
Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc., highlighted the region’s resilience, noting that while global economic pressures have slightly tempered growth, the area remains on a stable trajectory. She emphasized Kentucky’s industrial diversity as a key strength during uncertain times.
On June 26, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) approved support for 13 private-sector projects totaling $670 million in investment and 1,680 new jobs. These initiatives will receive up to $45 million in tax incentives over 15 years. Additionally, six local government projects were awarded $7 million in state funding to upgrade industrial parks, with local entities contributing 15% to 20% in matching funds through the Kentucky Product Development Initiative (KPDI).
Speed in project deployment has become a critical factor in attracting investment. In Louisville, Anthro Energy is investing $42 million to build a U.S.-owned advanced electrolyte production facility, a first of its kind at scale. The technology aims to improve battery safety, longevity, and energy density, supporting the growing demand for lithium-ion cells. The venture is projected to generate 110 jobs over the next decade.
Western Kentucky has also seen notable gains. E. Hofmann Packaging, a Canadian firm, is investing $43 million in Madisonville, creating 164 jobs, while ValorFlex is launching a $23.4 million flexible packaging plant in Bowling Green, adding 82 positions. Tyson Foods is investing $23 million to expand its poultry processing facility in Robards, and Sumitomo Electric Wiring Systems is committing $17 million in Franklin to double its workforce in automotive wiring harness production.
Terri Bradshaw, head of the Kentucky Association for Economic Development (KAED), noted a temporary slowdown in new project leads but affirmed that long-term investment remains robust. She pointed to upcoming completions like the BlueOval SK Battery Park as catalysts for future growth. KAED is prioritizing site readiness through KPDI, with $35 million recently allocated statewide and additional funding expected.
Workforce development is another key focus. One East Kentucky is promoting a pool of 10,000 skilled workers transitioning from the coal and energy sectors, attracting interest from international investors. In Henderson, a Manufacturing Academy introduces students to local career paths, while a new technical education track in industrial maintenance helps retain talent.
In Hopkinsville, the South Western Kentucky Economic Development Council reports record capital inflows from recent years, including a planned $1 billion component of the state’s battery and vehicle ecosystem. Executive Director Carter Hendricks emphasized efforts like SWK Ignite, which partners with schools to prepare students for advanced manufacturing roles, and collaborations with Fort Campbell’s Transition Assistance Program to connect military personnel with regional employment.
Greater Paducah is positioning itself for growth in late 2025 and 2026 by strengthening infrastructure and deepening business relationships. Meanwhile, BE NKY Growth Partnership, serving Northern Kentucky’s Cincinnati metro area, has seen rising interest from pharmaceutical, aerospace, food manufacturing, and life sciences sectors. Its Ignite Institute promotes STEM education with inclusive outreach.
Commerce Lexington reports $160 million in investment and 821 jobs created in 2025, driven by growth in biotech and pharmaceuticals. The organization is advancing a regional strategy across nine counties, home to Toyota’s largest global facility and a major research university. A new digital platform showcases regional assets to attract businesses and talent.
Jason S. Rainey, executive director of the Mount Sterling-Montgomery County Industrial Authority, anticipates increased investment in the second half of 2025 and into 2026, fueled by reshoring trends in American manufacturing.
— news from Lane Report
— News Original —
Economic Development: Manufacturers Are Making …Investments
Kentucky’s local economic developers had a mostly happy first half of 2025, despite a chaotic national and international scene of changing trade policies, up and down equity markets and dropping consumer sentiment. n nMost local officials across the state see steady investment activity — some say even an uptick — and are keeping their focus on site development and workforce training. n nThe biggest recent project is Haier US Appliance Solutions’ $490 million reshoring investment in Louisville to upgrade GE Appliance Park and add 800 jobs to its existing 7,200. Chinese-owned Haier will increase production capacity with what it told the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development will be the most advanced machinery available to build the modern washer and dryer units that today’s U.S. households favor. n n“Over the last four years, our region has seen record job growth and investment,” said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, president/CEO of Greater Louisville Inc., whose main focus is growth and recruitment of business in the region. “Current global economic headwinds are slightly cooling our region’s momentum, but we are still on track to maintain stable growth in 2025 and beyond.” n nOn June 26, members of the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority gave state support to 13 projects totaling $670 million in private investment and creating 1,680 more jobs, mostly in manufacturing. KEDFA granted those 13 private projects up to $45 million in public incentives over the next 15 years in the form of lower annual sales and worker wage tax payments to state and local government. n nKEDFA also allotted six local government projects $7 million in state money to improve industrial parks and other local public properties for rapid occupancy by commercial clients. The local governments are pitching in 15% to 20% matches to get dollars the General Assembly put in the state budget for the Kentucky Product Development Initiative. n nFaster speed-to-market time for new projects is often decisive in landing investment and jobs in today’s changing scene. n nChoosing Kentucky over competition from South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Connecticut, Haier decided its best move was at its 750-acre Louisville campus that has a 70-year track record of appliance-building know-how. n nLouisville also landed a $42 million Anthro Energy manufacturing facility that will use new technology to produce advanced electrolytes to improve the energy density of batteries. It will be the first establish the first large-scale, U.S.-owned and operated advanced electrolyte production facility and will significantly enhance the safety, lifespan and performance of modern lithium-ion battery cells. Anthro expects to generate 110 new jobs within a decade. n nThere are other exciting opportunities for the Greater Louisville region to benefit from reshoring and onshoring in the future, Davasher-Wisdom said, as business decision-makers begin feeling more certainty in the direction of the economy long-term. n n“While some industries continue to be impacted by macroeconomic factors and uncertainty that makes it difficult to predict costs and demand, others are continuing to grow and invest in Greater Louisville as our project pipeline remains steady,” she said. “Our region is uniquely positioned to fare favorably during uncertain economic times because of our diversity of industry.” n nMomentum building across the Western region n nThe region from Bowling Green through Henderson is also winning investments. n nIn June, Madisonville and Bowling Green each landed new operations to supply packaging for manufacturers. Canadian plastic packaging manufacturer E. Hofmann Packaging is investing $43 million to locate its first U.S. operation in Madisonville with state incentive support, based on expectations it will create 164 jobs. In Bowling Green, flexible packaging innovator ValorFlex is investing $23.4 million to establish an advanced manufacturing plant there that will create 82 new jobs. n nIn the Henderson County community of Robards, Tyson Foods is putting another $23 million into expanding the capacity and adding new equipment at its chicken products facility, where it currently has a staff of 1,100 employees. n nMeanwhile, Sumitomo Electric Wiring Systems will invest $17 million to expand its automotive wiring harness production in Franklin, where it will increase its number of jobs from 38 to 76. n nSteady outlook amid short-term uncertainty n nKentucky’s overall economic outlook remains strong, according to Terri Bradshaw, president and CEO of the Kentucky Association for Economic Development, a statewide professional organization. n n“While KAED members have observed a recent slowdown in active project leads,” Bradshaw said, “the state continues to see steady private-sector investment in manufacturing expansions. Looking ahead to late 2025 and early 2026, the completion of transformative projects like the BlueOval SK Battery Park and other gigafactory and energy investments position Kentucky for a new wave of growth. Though short-term activity may be moderating, the long-term investment pipeline remains robust, driven by infrastructure readiness, sector-specific strategies, and an adaptable workforce.” n nCurrently, KAED’s priority is advancing site development across Kentucky through the Kentucky Product Development Initiative (KPDI). With $35 million recently awarded to communities statewide and a new round launching later this summer, members are partnering closely with the Cabinet for Economic Development and local leaders to drive strategic site improvements that strengthen Kentucky’s position for business investment and job creation. n n“Equally important,” Bradshaw said, “we are focused on marketing both these KPDI-funded sites and the broader assets of the commonwealth, ensuring these investments generate meaningful visibility, engagement and interest from site selectors employers, and potential workforce alike.” n nFocusing on workforce and site readiness n nInvestment and job creation often take months or years to materialize and Kentucky entered a turbulent 2025 with its long-term strategies in production mode, bearing fruit and creating awareness. n nOfficials at One East Kentucky, the Pikeville-based economic development office for a nine-county region, are marketing a skilled workforce with 10,000 workers available from the coal/energy sector. They say they are seeing an uptick in project activity in recent months, particularly with international prospects. n n“Most of this activity seems to just be fact-finding, seeing what sites/buildings are available out there and exploring incentives,” said One East Kentucky President/CEO Colby Kirk. “I’m not seeing much in terms of decision-making at this point. I think there’s still too much volatility in the global economy with tariffs being implemented and pulled back.” n nThe last thing a company wants to do is make a certain decision in times of uncertainty, Kirk noted. n n“My hope is that as trade deals are brokered and economic policy stabilizes, we will see more announcements,” he said. n nAcross the state at Henderson Economic Development, the primary focus is on supporting existing industries and expansion projects, closely followed by efforts in workforce development, talent attraction and industry recruitment. The Tyson Foods expansion and upgrade at Robards was a payoff of that strategy. n n“Our organization views the present economic investment activity as stable by historic norms,” said Jackson Hogg, marketing specialist. n nIn the workforce development space, Hogg said the organization now hosts a Manufacturing Academy to introduce Henderson middle and high schoolers to local manufacturing career opportunities in the community. A new high school industrial maintenance career and technical education pathway is also helping to develop local skill pools and ensuring talent stays in the community. n nWith several big projects in the recent years, including what is slated to be a $1 billion piece of the state’s vehicle-battery ecosystem, the South Western Kentucky Economic Development Council in Hopkinsville experienced record amounts of capital investment in 2023 and 2024. n n“We have seen early success in 2025 and expect continued growth in the next 36-48 months, assuming no substantial unforeseen changes in the national economy, etc.,” said Carter Hendricks, executive director of SWK EDC. n nThe strategic plan that guides SWK EDC’s work includes a focus on target-sector recruitment, product/site development, strategic marketing and recruitment, business retention and expansion, and powerful partnerships for infrastructure, workforce and advocacy. n n“Our region is concerned with the number of graduating high school students who are planning to enter directly into the workforce but may not be prepared for today’s high-tech manufacturing environment,” Hendricks said. “In 2022, we launched SWK Ignite to partner with our regional school systems to ensure students are more aware and better prepared for manufacturing and industry opportunity in our service area. n nSWK is also partnering with the Fort Campbell Transition Assistance Program (TAP) to help military families, including soldiers leaving the military, connect with local job opportunities. n nPositioned for regional growth in 2026 and beyond n nGreater Paducah Economic Development expects momentum to build into late 2025 and early 2026, especially as site development progresses. Director of Operations Meg Morrow said 2025 has “not been an announcement year for our region,” but is viewed as an opportunistic time. n n“Activity has been slower overall, but we are strategically using this period to deepen relationships, advance existing projects and position our sites and infrastructure for future development,” Morrow said. n nThe view is similar at BE NKY Growth Partnership, which works to grow the Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties segment of the Cincinnati metropolitan statistical area (MSA). n n“There is a great deal of uncertainty regarding the global geopolitical environment and tariffs in the United States,” said Cheryl Besl, vice president of marketing. Despite that, BE NKY has seen its project activity increase recently and hosted site visits. n n“We have seen strong interest in the region from certain target sectors such as pharmaceutical, aerospace, food and flavoring manufacturing, and the life sciences industry,” Besl said. n nThe BE NKY team is initiating meetings with existing businesses and attending trade shows in the U.S. and abroad to market Northern Kentucky along with its partners at REDI Cincinnati and the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG). n nBE NKY has a range of workforce development initiatives, including an Ignite Institute to build STEM-focused education that makes certain young women are welcome and young men understand that manufacturing is cool. n nThe economic development team at Commerce Lexington has seen slower project activity but robust economic development activity across Greater Lexington in 2025. They report 821 jobs and more than $160 million in investment so far this year. n n“We expect that trend to continue regionally going into 2026, and as Lexington’s new Legacy Business Park comes online, we’ll see more announcements here locally,” said CEO/President Bob Quick. “We have seen growth in our existing businesses, especially in the biotech and pharmaceutical areas.” n nCommerce Lexington is a couple of years into pursuing a regionalization plan to unite the resources and impact of nine counties with a population of more than half a million that includes Toyota’s largest operation in the world and a major research university. n nIt recently launched a new set of websites that invitingly present key data for each county individually and the region as a whole — showcasing it as a place to visit, live, work, start a business, or return home to. n nThe Mount Sterling-Montgomery County Industrial Authority/Economic Development & Chamber of Commerce expects to see an increase in business investment the second half of 2025 and 2026 due to reshoring activities with American manufacturing, said Executive Director Jason S. Rainey n n“We are continuing to see stable levels on inquiries from companies seeking land and making investment in our community,” he said.