CHARLESTON — Two new major manufacturing facilities in the state, one building electric school buses and the other making steel, were announced Wednesday, bringing hundreds of jobs and the biggest investment in the state’s history.
Gov. Jim Justice announced that Nucor Corporation has selected Mason County as the location for a sheet steel mill, a record investment that will exceed $2.7 billion, making it the largest in West Virginia history, as well as the largest single investment Nucor has ever made.
“This is a landmark announcement in the history of our state,” said Justice, who is recovering from Covid at home. “Nucor’s brand new facility is going to be a key part of West Virginia’s DNA long into the future. It’s going to change lives by bringing hundreds of great-paying jobs to Mason County, and the economic ripple effects will bring even more goodness to our state.”
Nucor, the largest steel producer in the United States and based in Charlotte, N.C., produces steel by recycling scrap metal in electric arc furnaces. This steelmaking process makes Nucor one of the cleanest steel producers in the world and a leader in sustainable steel production.
Upon completion, the mill is expected to create about 800 jobs. Construction will begin this year.
The mill will have the capacity to produce up to 3 million tons of sheet steel per year for the automotive, appliance, HVAC, heavy equipment, agricultural, transportation, and construction markets.
Nucor expects the Mason County facility to be operational by 2024.
Justice also announced that electric school buses will soon be manufactured in West Virginia.
GreenPower Motor Company, Inc. will lease/purchase a manufacturing facility in South Charleston and begin production late this year.
Justice said the facility will start with up to 200 new jobs with a potential to bring up to 900 jobs when full production of zero-emission, all-electric school buses is reached in two years.
“I’d like to be the first to welcome GreenPower to West Virginia with open arms,” Justice said. “We’re thrilled that you’ve chosen to live and work in the paradise that our state offers. West Virginia continues to be the best place to do business. I’m excited to help support GreenPower on this important project and for what the future holds for their great company and our great state.”
Justice said the state is progressing because the focus is on “transforming West Virginia’s image” and embracing all new technologies.
“As we continue to diversify our economy, manufacturing these zero-emission school buses in West Virginia will open up a world of opportunities for our state,” he said. “Just as importantly, this development is going to change lives. Not only will it bring hundreds of great paying jobs to the Kanawha Valley, but the ripple effects on our state’s economy are going to be off-the-charts.”
Officials with GreenPower said in the announcement that when the facility reaches full production, the total economic impact could reach nearly $500 million per year.
“GreenPower is pleased to announce its zero-emissions, all-electric school bus manufacturing operations are expanding east of the Mississippi River, with West Virginia becoming our school bus manufacturing base of operations for the region,” said Brendan Riley, president of GreenPower. “West Virginia has shown us to be a pro-business state that has a workforce ready to take advantage of clean energy jobs.”
Riley said the facility will provide both training and immediate employment opportunities “with a competitive wage.”
GreenPower will partner with West Virginia’s Workforce Development Board and BridgeValley Community & Technical College for employee recruitment and training. Additional details on this aspect of the project will be provided in the future.
U.S. Senators Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., released statements praising the Nucor announcement.
“Today’s announcement is a wonderful way to start the New Year and truly shows that when you put politics aside and come together in a bipartisan way, great things happen,” Manchin said. “Nucor will be making Mason County the new home of their state-of-the-art steel mill that will employ West Virginians in good-paying, long-term jobs. and Nucor is committed to investing time and resources into our state, communities and their workers. The significant investments made through the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act have made West Virginia an even more attractive location to organizations like Nucor and as a result we will continue to attract exciting economic development investments of this magnitude that are transformative for the region and our people.”
Capito said needed materials for work resulting from the infrastructure bill will be made in West Virginia.
“At the federal level, we stepped forward and delivered a bipartisan infrastructure package, which is now law, that will help address our nation’s core infrastructure challenges,” she said. “But materials are needed to deliver these solutions. Nucor’s investment means we will not only be able to manufacture these needed materials, but we will also be able to manufacture them right here in West Virginia. I’m so proud of this announcement for many reasons, but primarily because it shows what we can achieve when we work together at the federal, state, and local levels for solid, long term success. I thank Governor Justice and his administration for their hard work to help make this major economic development announcement possible.”