State leaders and officials from BHE Renewables, PCC and ONE broke ground in March 2023 for the joint titanium melt facility and solar microgrid the companies are building in Ravenswood at the site of the former Century Aluminum plant. (File Photo)

RAVENSWOOD — A more than $500 million dollar investment is underway in Jackson County.

The former Century Aluminum plant between Millwood and Ravenswood on West Virginia 2 that once employed thousands of people and went offline in 2009 before closing permanently in 2015 is having site prep work done for a new titanium melt facility, Aries solar microgrid and factory to build the stationary storage containers made up of battery packs that will constitute the microgrid.

Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables (BHE) and Precision Castparts Inc. (PCC), both Berkshire Hathaway Inc. businesses, announced in September 2022 that they had purchased the more than 2,000-acre site.

According to a September 2022 press release about the project, PCC was the first to locate on the site and is developing a state-of-the-art titanium melt facility. Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE) will construct a facility on the site to build large-scale battery storage systems using Michigan-made lithium iron phosphate battery cells and will construct Aries solar microgrids to ensure access to solar energy.

ONE Vice President of Communications Dan Pierce said that ONE will make battery cells, pack them in battery packs in Michigan and then ship the battery packs to West Virginia, where they will be built into Aries solar microgrid storage containers.

Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables (BHE Renewables), Precision Castparts Corp. (PCC) and its subsidiary Titanium Metals Corporation Inc. (TIMET) and Our Next Energy (ONE) Inc. are conducting site preparation work for the titanium melt facility and solar microgrid they will build at the site of the old Century Aluminum plant in Ravenswood. What the project will look like when it is complete is pictured above and is taken from a screenshot of a video on the project’s website. (Photo Provided)

The Aries solar microgrids that are made on site will be used during the day to power the site and any extra solar energy generated during the day will be stored in the storage systems to be used at night. The solar microgrids will be used to power operations at the site, according to Pierce.

Right now ONE is working to gain occupancy of an existing 40,000-square-foot industrial building on the site to use as the location for the facility to build the battery storage systems, according to Pierce.

“ONE plans to review manufacturing plans with local leadership in Ravenswood in March,” Pierce said.

Pierce said ONE plans on hiring 18 people to work at the factory by the end of 2024, and they will have more than 100 employees on site by the end of 2025. The positions at the factory will include welders, steel workers, fabricators, painters, assembly workers and manufacturing quality team members.

Regarding the titanium melt facility, PCC Director of Corporate Communications David Dugan said the company is still in the construction phase and expects to begin constructing buildings in March.

The Century Aluminum Plant went offline in 2009. Its site is the location for a new titanium melt facility and solar microgrid that represents a more than $500 million investment in Jackson County. (File Photo)

“As you can imagine, there’s been a lot of site preparation in advance of putting up structures,” Dugan said. “The community has been very welcoming and we believe the site is a good choice for the new, state-of-the-art operation.”

The plant will employ approximately 200 people and will use 100% renewable energy to manufacture titanium products for the aerospace and other industries, Dugan said.

“We are very pleased with our collaboration with BHE Renewables and Our Next Energy, and we look forward to beginning production in early 2025,” Dugan said.

PCC is continuing to recruit for positions at the plant and interested people should visit www.jacksoncountygrows.com to learn more and view open positions, according to Dugan.

BHE Renewables Vice President of Communications and Public Relations Dan Winters said that site clearing and grubbing work is expected to take place early this year for the titanium plant and the facility for building the battery storage systems.

Winters said that construction on the solar and battery storage project will be done in phases through the first quarter of 2027.

Solar arrays will be installed, ancillary electrical equipment will be brought on site and perimeter fencing will be put up from April to June of 2024. The battery storage systems will be installed within the footprint of the project, according to Winters.

“It’s exciting to see activity on the property,” Winters said. “People driving by on (State) Route 2 have probably noticed equipment on the move. For BHE Renewables, the work centers around permitting and site preparation for the solar project to be built in phases to serve the titanium facility.”

Republican State Delegate for the 17th District Jonathan Pinson said he is excited about the projects coming to the site.

“We have generational opportunity (at the site), in that in the next two years or so that facility is going to be up and running and we’re going to be sending our kids and grandkids there to work,” he said. “I think it’s vitally important for our region in relation to jobs, in relation to opportunity for folks who can get back into the workforce and get back into the workforce at very skilled job functions and great career opportunities that will be very well-paying jobs.”

Pinson anticipates more manufacturers wanting to locate at or near the site because of the solar microgrid and some of the advantages it provides, he said.

People are excited about the projects coming to the site, according to Pinson.

“As I speak with folks in the community — and not just Jackson County, but Mason County and Wood County — they’re very very excited and interested in seeing that property up and running again. Really, that facility, when it’s done, will be one of the nicest in the nation.”

Learn more about the projects coming to the former Century Aluminum plant site at www.jacksoncountygrows.com.

Michelle Dillon can be reached at mdillon@newsandsentinel.com.