West Virginia lawmakers swiftly passed a bill meant to pave the way for a large manufacturer wanting to be assured of an on-site source of alternative energy.
State officials so far haven’t named the company and have said that will come during a Tuesday announcement. But officials said the project could result in 1,000 jobs in the future and specified the location as the site of the old Century Aluminum plant in Ravenswood, Jackson County.
The development is expected to be one entity providing alternative power to a related company or companies. There has been a lot of talk at the Capitol that the businesses involved are units of Berkshire Hathaway.
Speaking today on MetroNews’ “Talkline,” House Speaker Roger Hanshaw described a significant development opportunity.
“The bill relates to the sale of renewable electrical power by a company that would generate electrical power for a sale to an on-site customer. So it wouldn’t take long to think about who the large players are in that space and what some of the industries are that have a historic presence in the Ravenswood area,” said Hanshaw, R-Clay.
“The old Century Aluminum site is one of the most well-poised sites for industrial development certainly in West Virginia if not the entire East Coast.”
What do we know about Governor Justice's economic announcement? @SpeakerHanshaw provides some context, and he discusses the special session with @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/KjnhdgooIS
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) September 12, 2022
West Virginia’s legislation would establish two districts allowing renewable energy to be produced and provided without going through the state Public Service Commission. That’s apparently a key element of how the developer hopes to operate. West Virginia officials seem to only have one development in mind, but have tailored the bill for the possibility of replicating it in the future.
“What we’re really setting up here is a place where we have a district not just for one or two companies, but hopefully a number of companies that are going to be able to create a hub of all kinds of business activity,” said Delegate Larry Rowe, D-Kanawha, speaking on the House floor. “It’s just exactly the kind of thing we want.
“They’re going to produce power, they’re going to manufacture, they’re going to do it not by themselves but with other companies, and it’s going to cause us to have a critical mass of manufacturing in two different districts.”
State development officials described a great chance for a significant development.
“This is a great opportunity for West Virginia; it uses renewable resources and it creates jobs and opportunity,” state Development Secretary Mitch Carmichael told members of the House Judiciary Committee.
Carmichael reflected on his own longstanding ties to Jackson County when he described the potential impact of the property.
“As a point of personal privilege, living in Jackson County and talking about good West Virginia jobs, my father worked at that plant that was located there. It was built in 1957 and was shut down in, like, 2009, and it devastated that community,” he said.
“And now to see the resurgence of it in a new world, class manufacturing facility in an aerospace community, what it will do for the region and the area is just unimaginable.”
Gov. Jim Justice called lawmakers into special session to consider this bill along with another that would transfer $150 million to the state Road Fund, mostly for maintenance work on secondary roads.
Justice expressed excitement over the development project.
“There is an announcement that is right on our doorsteps, and we hope to be able to do that tomorrow and make you all really proud,” Justice said during a briefing today.
The governor underscored the importance of establishing the “Certified Industrial Business Expansion Development Program.” “These people are not coming to West Virginia unless we have this set up for them,” he said.
Senators handled the economic development bill and the secondary roads funding at a swift pace in the afternoon, passing both without much discussion.
“This is really a powerful economic development tool for West Virginia,” said Senate Finance Chairman Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, who explained the bill in that chamber.