A planned energy project in Maine will utilize batteries manufactured in West Virginia, according to U.S. Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and Joe Manchin, I-W.Va.
More than $100 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will fund a multi-day battery system in Lincoln, Maine, which will use batteries made by Form Energy in Weirton, according to a press release.
“This investment is great news for Weirton and signals that West Virginia will continue our proud tradition of helping power America,” Capito said.
“I am proud to see the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law continue to strengthen America’s supply chains and create new jobs right here in West Virginia,” Manchin said. “The Mountain State is now at the forefront of innovation as we lead the charge of bringing battery manufacturing back to the United States.”
Form Energy, which manufactures multi-day, iron-air renewable batteries, announced its plan to invest in West Virginia at the end of December 2022.
“All the batteries for this pioneering multi-day energy storage system will be manufactured at Form Factory 1 in Weirton, West Virginia,” said Mateo Jaramillo, Form Energy co-founder and CEO.
The Maine project is projected to be the “largest energy storage project by energy capacity announced yet in the world,” Jaramillo said.
Form selected the 55-acre site of a former steel manufacturing facility in Weirton for its first factory after a year-long, nationwide site selection process that included reviewing over 500 locations across 16 states.
Construction of the factory has been “substantially completed,” and the company is in the process of “ramping up its manufacturing workforce, ahead of starting high-volume production later this year,” according Jaramillo.
The new facility is expected to create a minimum of 750 new full-time jobs and will represent a total investment of up to $760 million.