Michigan Town Asks Appeals Court to Allow It to Stop Chinese Battery Plant Project

A small Michigan town, Green Charter Township, took its fight against a Chinese-owned battery plant to the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Ohio on May 8.

The case highlights growing unease on the local, state, and federal levels regarding Chinese land purchases in rural areas, especially those near military facilities or sensitive infrastructure.

In the Gotion Inc. v. Green Charter Township case, arguments on May 8 centered on whether the township breached its agreements with Gotion and a lower court’s preliminary injunction ordering the township to fulfill those agreements.

The controversy surrounding the case began when community members voiced concerns about Gotion’s ties with China after the township board voted to support the project in 2022.

Gotion Inc. of California is a wholly owned and controlled subsidiary of Gotion High-Tech Inc., a battery manufacturer headquartered in China.

In November 2023, the township’s residents recalled the entire board that supported the project and replaced them with new members.

Green Township’s supervisor, clerk, treasurer, and two trustees—all Republicans—were replaced by challengers.

One week after the election, at their first meeting in November, the new board rescinded a resolution that the previous board had passed to route water directly from the Big Rapids city system to the Gotion site. 

The five officials who were replaced participated in a 7–0 vote in December 2022 to approve the Gotion project in Mecosta County.

Gotion filed a federal lawsuit in March 2024, alleging that the township broke the development agreement, which requires the township to assist the company in obtaining the permits and authorizations needed for the project.

According to court documents, Gotion claims that the township rescinded a water extension agreement resolution, making it impossible to obtain the water needed to complete the project and thereby breaking the agreement.

Last spring, District Judge Jane Beckering approved a preliminary injunction requiring the township to comply with the development agreement for the $2.36 billion project until the case was resolved.

During appellate court arguments on May 8, Robert Dube, of the Michigan law firm of Fahey Schultz Burzych Rhodes, argued that the township has the right to revoke any water deal under Michigan law.

Dube told the three-judge panel that while Gotion could seek damages, the contract was subject to future ordinances and laws that might impact the agreement.

He added that Gotion never applied for a single permit from the township, so the company cannot blame the township for the lack of development.

“They haven’t even applied for zoning,” he said during the hearing. “We don’t think Gotion has shown that they have the damages they’re claiming.”

Scott Hamilton, an attorney for Dickinson Wright of Michigan, appeared on Gotion’s behalf.

He said Gotion’s deal with the township had been years in the making and involved contracts with the Michigan Strategic Fund and the Michigan Department of Economic Development.

He said those contracts, along with tax incentives, attracted Gotion to Costa County in Michigan, specifically to Green Charter Township.

“They essentially said, Gotion, please come and build your facility here, and we will give you all of these incentives to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars,” Hamilton said.

If Gotion can’t continue with the project, it will suffer “irreparable” harm, he claimed, because of its obligations with other entities within the state.

“You can’t calculate the domino effect,” he said.

After the hearing, the town’s supervisor, Jason Kruse, who attended the hearing, commended its attorneys.

“Our legal team has done an excellent job defending Green Charter Township, and I look forward to the judge’s opinion,” Jason Kruse, Green Township supervisor, told The Epoch Times.

Gotion’s attorney did not respond to a request for comment.