Craig Howell GOING UP – Crews lift the first sections of steel framing for Form Factory One in Weirton Friday afternoon. The facility, built by Form Energy to be its first large-scale manufacturing facility, is scheduled to open sometime in 2024.
WEIRTON – The first of many milestones was reached Friday afternoon in the construction of a new battery manufacturing facility in Weirton.
Fifty-six days after breaking ground, Form Energy officials celebrated the lifting of the first steel beams for the 800,000-square-foot plant development known as Form Factory One.
“This is exciting,” said Ted Wiley, president and chief operating officer of Form Energy, as he watched five of the first support beams and a section of the roof structure being installed on a portion of the 55 acres earmarked for the facility.
Wiley and other Form Energy employees joined Weirton city officials, Business Development Corp. of the Northern Panhandle and Frontier Group of Companies for Friday’s event.
As part of the process, Wiley explained, crews have been working to dig a series of 700 micropiles, five feet wide and 120 feet into the ground.
Approximately 300 of these micropiles have been excavated, allowing major construction to begin.
“It’s enough that we can start raising the steel,” Wiley pointed out.
Crews are taking a sequential approach to construction, working with contractors on design and construction at the same time, often with workers from different companies working on a particular area simultaneously.
Form Energy encourages the idea of seeing everyone working on the project as part of the same team, with the goal of getting Form Factory One up and running.
Officials expect the final steel structure to be complete by November and closed by the end of the year.
“We’re on the right track,” Wiley said, noting that substantial completion of the structure is expected in early 2024.
The factory is expected to begin operations in mid-to-late 2024, with expansion planned from 2025, according to a schedule previously presented by the company.
The company hosted a grand opening on May 26, with guests including U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, DW.Va., joining several state and local officials, as well as company representatives and stakeholders.
Although it will still be some time before operations begin, Form Energy has already received orders for its iron-air battery designed to be able to store 100 hours of energy.
“There has been a lot of interest from utilities across the country,” Wiley noted, adding that the company continues to talk to potential customers.
Earlier this month, Minnesota regulators approved a 10-megawatt/1,000-megawatt-hour system for Northern States Power, which Form Energy will build. Georgia Power ordered its own system in June.
As part of its plans, Form Energy anticipates creating 750 jobs for its mill, which will sit on land formerly used for the operations of the former Weirton Steel Corp. The project represents an investment of approximately 760 million dollars, with funds coming from Form Energy, as well as the state of West Virginia.
The Weirton site was selected from a list of 500 locations in 16 states.
(Howell can be reached at chowell@weirtondailytimes.com and followed on Twitter @CHowellWDT)
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