In Sidney, Ohio, a Chinese battery-component manufacturer arrived with an attractive proposition: a major new factory, hundreds of millions of dollars in investment and eventually 1,199 full-time jobs.
Four years later, the situation surrounding SEMCORP Manufacturing USA Inc. looks considerably different.
Investigative materials reviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation show Chinese nationals being transported between temporary motel housing and SEMCORP’s Sidney plant, sometimes at unusual hours. Job advertisements have also listed Mandarin as a preferred language for certain positions.
SEMCORP confirmed that Chinese nationals work at the facility. James Shih, head of global projects and legal for SEMCORP Group, told the DCNF that the employees are in the United States on L-1 visas, which are used for qualifying employees transferred within multinational companies, including executives and workers with specialized knowledge.
Shih disputed the suggestion that workers staying in hotels and receiving company transportation is inherently suspicious, particularly when employees do not have American driver’s licenses. He said SEMCORP intends to train American workers, although he did not provide a timeline.
“We’re still early in our launch but look forward to bringing hundreds of advanced manufacturing jobs right here to Ohio,” Shih said.
Those jobs were central to the original deal.
In 2022, Sidney City Council unanimously approved a job-creation tax credit after SEMCORP projected 1,199 full-time positions and $73 million in annual payroll. The company also received a 75% property-tax exemption for 15 years through a Community Reinvestment Area agreement.
“We are encouraged by their willingness to be a good neighbor,” Sidney City Manager Andrew Bowsher said following the vote.
The promised employment numbers subsequently fell.
According to the Ohio Department of Development, SEMCORP’s commitment was reduced from 1,199 jobs to 300 two years later. The company ultimately never executed the agreement necessary for the state incentives, and the Ohio Tax Credit Authority voted June 1 to cancel it.
Shih said SEMCORP does not plan to use city tax breaks tied to hiring or investment targets.
The Ohio controversy is unfolding alongside another problem for SEMCORP thousands of miles away.
The company opened its first factory outside China in Debrecen, Hungary, in 2023. Hungarian authorities have since investigated serious groundwater contamination near the facility.
According to Hungarian news outlet Index, testing detected aluminum in groundwater at approximately 13,000 times the applicable legal limit. The regional government suspended the plant’s production license in late June, Reuters reported.
Shih said several contaminants found in the groundwater are not used in SEMCORP’s manufacturing operations and noted that its facility sits inside an industrial park containing other battery manufacturers. He acknowledged that aluminum is used in SEMCORP’s process.
Debrecen’s water utility has said the contamination has not affected the city’s drinking water.
Debrecen Mayor Papp László called for authorities to investigate thoroughly and consider penalties if warranted.
“We strongly urge the environmental protection authority to conduct a comprehensive investigation into this matter,” László said, according to a DCNF translation. He called for authorities to examine SEMCORP’s responsibility and, if necessary, suspend manufacturing or revoke its environmental permit.
The situation is particularly notable because Hungary aggressively pursued Chinese battery investment under former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, offering incentives while seeking to establish the country as an important European battery-manufacturing center. Hungary has since tightened rules surrounding some non-European Union workers.
The broader American question extends well beyond one Ohio factory.
Battery technology is important to civilian industries ranging from electric vehicles to consumer electronics, but advanced batteries also have military applications. Michael Busler, a finance professor at Stockton University and policy analyst, argues that this makes dependence on China particularly risky.
“It is critically important that the U.S. does not rely on China for these products,” Busler told the DCNF.
Congress has attempted to limit some federal incentives benefiting companies owned or effectively controlled by China. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed by President Donald Trump in July 2025, included restrictions designed to prevent certain tax credits from flowing to prohibited foreign entities.
Determining what constitutes effective Chinese control, however, can become complicated when multinational corporate structures and American subsidiaries are involved.
