Electric vehicle maker ready to roll into Aiken; here's how you can find a job there

Joe Hotchkiss, Augusta Chronicle
Columbia Vehicle Group produces electric vehicles such as the Utilitruck, which can carry up to four passengers and 1,500 pounds.
Columbia Vehicle Group produces electric vehicles such as the Utilitruck, which can carry up to four passengers and 1,500 pounds.

A Wisconsin-based electric vehicle maker is bringing 180 jobs to Aiken County when it opens its new $12.2 million production facility.

The announcement marks the most recent example of the metro Augusta area’s growing commitment to tying part of its economic future to the growing e-vehicle market.

Columbia Vehicle Group produces golf carts, utility vehicles, maintenance vehicles and electric bikes. The company is relocating manufacturing operations from Florida and Wisconsin to the former Fenix Manufacturing Solutions facility at 2065 University Pkwy., Aiken.

Fenix sold the 154,480-square-foot building earlier this year to a Wisconsin-based limited liability corporation for $5.4 million. Columbia intends to upgrade the building over the next 18 months.

Granted: How a U.S. Department of Energy incentive program helped bring jobs to Augusta

Aiken County Council in March approved tax incentives that are part of Columbia’s decision to come to Aiken. The move also puts the company closer to its customers and supply chains, Columbia said.

Job-seekers who want to learn more about Columbia Vehicle Group can email jobs@columbiausa.com.

Other companies that make parts and materials for EVs have located in the Augusta area.

Synesqo broke ground in April for a new facility that will produce a plastic that helps e-vehicle batteries work more safely and last longer. Synesqo is one of two companies formed with the split of Solvay, which has operated a specialty polymers plant in Augusta since 2000.

In 2022, German company Aurubis AG broke ground in south Richmond County on a $340 million copper recycling and smelting plant that will process about 90,000 tons of complex recycling materials annually to extract about 35,000 tons of blister copper. Copper is one of the most in-demand finished products that goes into making EVs.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Aiken becoming new home to longtime electric vehicle manufacturer

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