TYK selected as general contractor for EV battery plant project

The Honda and LG joint venture selected TYK as the general contractor for its $3.5 billion electrical vehicle (EV) battery plant in Jefferson.

According to multiple reports, TYK is a joint venture between Turner Construction Co., Yates Construction and Kokosing Industrial. 

The project will create jobs for members of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50 as it is covered by a Project Labor Agreement (PLA). In total, it is expected to create around 4,000 union construction jobs.

The PLA was signed in order to secure a highly skilled and trained workforce, such as Local 50 members. This was critical due to the high demand for well-trained construction workers, created by the Central Ohio’s building boom. 

With extensive experience in commercial and industrial insulation, Local 50 members will install Mechanical Insulation in the battery plant to save energy, reduce greenhouse emissions and protect Honda employees. 

The joint venture general contractor is led by Turner, one of the largest construction firms in the U.S. The company has a long history with Honda, as they were the general contractor overseeing the construction of the Marysville Auto Plant (MAP) and East Liberty Auto Plant (ELP).

Tom Manahan, Senior Vice President of Turner and Principal in Charge of the Project, said Turner is extremely excited to be part of the team that will deliver the plant and support Honda’s goals to electrify its entire fleet of cars sold in North America.

“Everyone involved in the construction of this plant is contributing to something extraordinary,” Manahan said. “The results of their hard work will be a plant that will employ so many members of the community in new green economy jobs.”

“We certainly want to make the site an attractive site, not only to the subcontractors, but to the individual tradespeople as well,” he added,

Yates has a history of building electric vehicle battery plants and Westerville-based Kokosing is a civil construction company.

Excavation work will begin in early December, with construction set to take place later in the winter. The plant is scheduled to begin production in 2025.