HONOLULU – Korean electric car company CT&T made a splash in three states when it rolled shiny, tiny vehicles off big rigs and announced with smiling governors that it would hire hundreds of Americans to build them in new factories.
But those plans have stalled in Hawaii, Pennsylvania and South Carolina without anyone hired, any plants constructed or any electric cars assembled.
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The South Korean electric car and golf cart manufacturer has apparently abandoned its pledge to the three states — without notice — and deserted its new U.S. markets amid financial difficulties, The Associated Press has learned.
Meanwhile, an American subsidiary, CT&T United, is in the process of separating from Seoul-based CT&T and hopes to take on North American ownership and attract more U.S. investors, James Park, vice president of the subsidiary, told the AP in a phone interview.
He said CT&T United is abandoning plans for facilities in Pennsylvania, but the company still wants to build in Hawaii and South Carolina. Park said the U.S. subsidiary hopes to raise $250 million to move forward with its plans.
But there have been no signs of any progress, state and business leaders said.
Since the governors of all three states attracted publicity and news coverage for CT&T, the company has gone silent. Its phone lines in Atlanta and Los Angeles have been disconnected, and the website for CT&T United remains under construction.
CT&T had said in May of last year it intended to build an assembly facility in Hawaii that would employ up to 400 people and produce up to 10,000 vehicles a year.
But, said Maria Tome, renewable energy program manager for the Hawaii Energy Office, “They did their thing and they left, and I haven’t heard anything since.”
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