RAVENSWOOD, W.Va. — A new solar project in Jackson County will keep West Virginia on the map when it comes to energy transition opportunities, according to the president and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy (BHE) Renewables.
“It’s important for us to prove that it can be done in rural locations,” Alicia Knapp said on this week’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
BHE Renewables is developing the project at the site of the former Century Aluminum plant in Ravenswood. Officials broke ground earlier this month.
Knapp said they don’t only want to offer these kinds of facilities in states that typically see a lot of sunshine. She said it’s about investing in states that want to create a new pathway forward, too.
“It really addresses the energy transition in saying ‘if the only place we’re going to put solar panels and renewable energy in sunshine states and that’s where the companies are going to go that want renewables,’ that means places like West Virginia are going to be left out,” she said.
State leaders have helped BHE Renewables with planting roots, Knapp said.
“To show up in this kind of way does send a signal to the rest of the investment community. It’s not just showing up in West Virginia. It’s the way we’re greeted when we get there,” she said.
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables is developing the property into a first-of-its-kind solar energy microgrid-powered industrial site in Ravenswood. Alicia Knapp, BHE Renewables President & CEO, discusses this project with @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/MJldAPRTbL
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 13, 2023
Knapp said their goal is to recruit and retain workers. Berkshire Hathaway’s deal with the state calls for 200 jobs within three years, although officials have said there is potential for 1,000.
“Attracting people back to the state to be part of a new manufacturing industry, lasting and good paying jobs. I see that being a part of it. Also, we’re partnering with the state with local educational institutions, in some cases, re-train workers,” Knapp said.
Berkshire Hathaway got interested in West Virginia after state Senator Glenn Jeffries, R-Putnam, sent a letter to company owner Warren Buffett. That led to multiple visits by Berkshire Hathaway to identify an appropriate site.
The company ONE said it’s going to build a new Aries Grid factory on the site where utility-scale battery storage systems will be produced.
U.S. Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito previously said funding from the federal infrastructure law will help the BHE Renewables project.
The company and the state announced the $300 million project last September.