< Previous124 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION minutes. We’ll start to see these rolled out on much larger scales over the next two to fi ve years.” Later down the line, he believes, are “drones large enough to carry people, where you really have that ‘Jetsons’ platform that will respond to your phone, land nearby and get you safely to your destination in fi ve or minutes. ere’s a lot of work,” he concedes, “that still has to be done to make sure that can happen.” True to Tulsa A fourth program supported by Tulsa’s federal grant is to fund certifi cate programs, degree programs and apprenticeships to generate the workforce to help fi ll those thousands of projected jobs. Equitable economic growth being a cornerstone of the BBB Challenge, a commitment to inclusion is built into all four components of the TRAM Corridor project, says Jennifer Hankins of Tulsa Innovation Labs. “In workforce,” she says, “we forecast that just over % of the jobs we create will be accessible without a four-year degree. at’s huge.” Average projected wages of nearly $, a year, Hankins says, work out to one-third higher than the Tulsa region’s current average. “Being a pretty small place,” she says, “we know that to be globally competitive in these emerging industries we have to be able to involve and engage everybody. We need more people in our workforce. We have to be focused on building from the grassroots up. It’s not just the right thing to do, but if we don’t fi gure out how to do it, our community won’t continue to grow. “ e Build Back Better win,” she says, “was huge. It funded not only our vision for advanced mobility but also our engagement with communities that haven’t been involved in high-tech endeavors.” Most importantly, says Hankins, the boost from the Biden Administration “really pushes our legacy aerospace industry into the future. at’s who brought us to the dance. To build something entirely new would take us another handful of decades, so this opportunity is everything to us. It’s indicative of what we can do with what we have. It’s new, but it’s authentic to our region and it’s doable. We’re pretty excited.” OSU-Tulsa will house the LaunchPad Center of Advanced Mobility. Photo courtesy of Oklahoma State University SITE SELECTION JULY 2023 125 West Virginia Builds Life Sciences Cluster W hen Mylan Pharmaceuticals merged with Pfi zer’s Upjohn division to form Viatris in , West Virginia lost one of its largest life sciences companies. Yet the state didn’t lick their wounds for long. Instead of sitting in sorrow, West Virginia began building the city Mylan left behind into a life sciences cluster. Over the last two years, Morgantown’s West Virginia University has spearheaded the rapid expansion of the city’s life sciences sector. Ranked among the top medical schools in America for research and primary care, WVU already off ers this industry its most dire need: a pipeline of skilled workers. In addition to this advantage, the university knew that adding to its portfolio of essential infrastructure was vital to enticing expanding companies. Last July, Site Selection Magazine reported that in March , Viatris transferred ownership of Mylan’s former Morgantown manufacturing facility to WVU Medicine. Over the last year, WVU has breathed new life into the former pill plant. by LINDSAY LOPP lindsay.lopp@siteselection.com West Virginia STATE SPOTLIGHT BY THE NUMBERS WEST VIRGINIA Higher Ed. R&D Expenditure in $000s: 220,189 Number of NCRCs: 71,697 | % Improvement 2021–22: 1.55% Business Tax Climate Rank Change 2022–2023: +1 Industrial power cost per kWh: $6.88 Total Rev. as Share of Total Expenses, FY 2006-2020: 104.3% 2022 Workers’ Comp Index Rate: 0.63 Selected Top Projects by Capital Investment COMPANY CITY INVESTMENT $M Adams Fork Energy / CNX Resources Corp. / Haldor Topsøe A/S / Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe / Transgas Development Mingo Cnty. $3,000 TCL Specialties / Thirumalai Chemicals Marshall Cnty. 150 Clean-Seas WV / Clean Vision Corp. Dickinson 50 Aquabanq Capon Bridge 30 Our Next Energy / Bhe Renewables Millwood 22 Source: Conway Projects Database West Virginia Governor Jim Justice and UNDBIO Chairman Jun Yong-soo Photo courtesy Offi ce of Governor Jim Justice126 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION e . -million-sq.-ft. facility has been transformed into the WVU Innovation Corporation, a business incubator working to increase employment opportunities, boost West Virginia’s economy and accelerate the advancement of science, tech, engineering, math and medicine. In March, the facility welcomed three new tenants: Yunigen, LLC, a pharmaceutical company revolutionizing drug discovery, development, and commercialization; ExesaLibero Pharma, a Morgantown- based developer of small molecule drugs to treat bone disease; and GATC Health Corp, a tech company utilizing AI to innovate drug discovery and disease prediction. “We are taking advantage of this prime facility and support of the university to not only further our business initiatives, but also to provide direct, immediate benefi t to the Morgantown area and West Virginia,” e expansion by GATC Health in West Virginia is the perfect example of how tech innovation is spreading beyond Silicon Valley and into more remote regions where resources to boost economic development, specialized research and job growth can be found in clusters that feed off universities.” —Rebecca Fannin , author of “Silicon Heartland” e expansion by GATC Health West Virginia University, situated in downtown Morgantown, West Virginia, sits along the Monongahela River and boasts a student body of just under 19,000 undergraduates. Photo: Getty Images128 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION said Jeff Moses, president of GATC Health Corp., in the initial release. “We will be hiring life sciences and biotech focused teams, R&D lab technicians and administrative staff to further attract partnering businesses to this facility and delivering back significant advances in treatments that greatly affect the 13 states across the Appalachian region.” Rebecca Fannin, author of “Silicon Heartland,” noted in April 2023 that “the expansion by GATC Health in West Virginia is the perfect example of how tech innovation is spreading beyond Silicon Valley and into more remote regions where resources to boost economic development, specialized research and job growth can be found in clusters that feed off universities.” This sentiment certainly rings true in Morgantown. In April, West Virginia University secured another massive economic win for the state when UNDBIO, a South Korean pharmaceutical company that provides diabetic care solutions, signed a lease to build an insulin manufacturing facility at WVU Research Park. The company is investing $100 million in phase one of the project, during which the facility will work to secure FDA approval for its insulin product. Over the first three years of the project, approximately 200 jobs will be created. Once the company receives FDA approval, UNDBIO plans to continue expanding the company’s footprint in West Virginia and create more jobs. Located in and the county seat of Monongalia County, idyllic Morgantown is the third largest city in the state. Photo: Getty ImagesWISCONSIN STATE SPOTLIGHT SITE SELECTION JULY 2023 129 SITE SELECTION JULY 2023 129 W isconsin manufacturers have a “tremendous opportunity” to become a critical epicenter of the global supply chain for electric vehicles (EV), but only if bold public/ private investments are made over the next few years. “Wisconsin’s automotive manufacturing sector is one of its greatest economic assets,” employing more than , workers in communities throughout the state, notes the report. It concludes that for Wisconsin to stay competitive as the world transitions from In March, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation(WEDC) issued the following summary of a report from SRI International on the Badger State’s EV industry. Report Recommends Steps for Success EV EV BY THE NUMBERS WISCONSIN Higher Ed. R&D Expenditure in $000s: 1,671,344 Number of NCRCs: 293,938 | Percent Improved 2021–22: 0.08% Business Tax Climate Rank Change 2022–2023: -1 Industrial power cost per kWh: $9.82 Total Rev. as Share of Total Expenses, FY 2006-19: 103.3% 2022 Workers’ Comp Index Rate: 1.67 Selected Top Projects by Capital Investment COMPANY CITY INVESTMENT $M Microsoft Corp. Mount Pleasant 1000 The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. Milwaukee 500 Charter Next Generation Milton 270 Watco Companies Wausau 147 ABB New Berlin 100 Source: Conway Projects Database Photo: Getty Images130 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION internal combustion engines (ICEs) to electric vehicles and electrically powered technologies, the sector must keep pace and reinvent itself to become part of the growing EV supply chain. e report makes six major recommendations, which include: • Enhancing productivity through modernization and upskilling. • Scaling up the state’s middle- skill worker pipeline by investing in worker training through the Wisconsin technical college system. • Increasing manufacturers’ access to regional, national, and global EV markets. • Building connections between Wisconsin innovators and the EV industry. • Aligning EV policymaking with state economic development interests. • Preparing for the future of mobility and sustainability. e report notes that Wisconsin’s automotive suppliers are less vulnerable to the disruption caused by the shift to EVs because they manufacture components for both ICE and EV products. For example, metals fabricators and plastics product manufacturers hold an outsized presence in Wisconsin compared with other states. Many of these suppliers are small- and mid-sized businesses that employ fewer than workers. e report cautions, however, that the labor-intensive nature of these businesses makes them more vulnerable to labor shortages, which may make them less competitive over time. e answer, the report recommends, is to increase productivity through investments in worker retraining and advanced manufacturing technologies — and the payoff will be higher wages for workers and growing demand for their products. e report notes that Wisconsin’s automotive suppliers are uniquely situated to supply materials and components to emerging EV hubs, such as in neighboring Illinois where automakers Rivian and Stellantis are both opening new production facilities. In interviews with SRI researchers, industry leaders emphasized that Wisconsin’s proximity to key automotive clusters positions the state’s manufacturers to develop long- term relationships with businesses in neighboring states. e report notes that most of Wisconsin’s larger automotive suppliers are actively adapting to the EV transition. ese companies have more resources to undertake strategic planning and capital investments due to their “As our businesses explore these new markets, we need to have the tools to help them invest and mitigate the risk associated with leaping into transitioning markets.” — Missy Hughes , WEDC Secretary and CEO Charging stations for electric vehicles Photo: Getty Images SITE SELECTION JULY 2023 131 larger size, so it is critical for the state to help smaller suppliers make comparable investments in order to remain competitive. WEDC Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes said the report “calls for Wisconsin to do what it does best — bring together the longstanding relationships between state government, private businesses, and educational institutions — to assess and meet the demands of this growing market. As our businesses explore these new markets, we need to have the tools to help them invest and mitigate the risk associated with leaping into transitioning markets.” She added that Wisconsin is already emerging as a leader in the development of battery power and storage systems. She also pointed to investments by WEDC and other stakeholders to increase worker productivity and to prepare workers with the skills needed by the EV industry, including reskilling initiatives through the Workforce Innovation Grants. The report was funded with a grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration. The state received $1 million for planning related to the electric vehicle industry, which is being used by WEDC to help Wisconsin businesses adapt to the demands of the EV market and by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to plan for EV infrastructure. Maine Won’t Wait for Clean Energy Maine expands its network of clean energy companies and resources. Maine STATE SPOTLIGHT BY THE NUMBERS MAINE Higher Ed. R&D Expenditure in $000s: 154,111 Number of NCRCs: 366 | Percent Improved 2021–22: 14.21% Business Tax Climate Rank Change 2022–2023: -1 Industrial power cost per kWh: $11.03 Total Rev. as Share of Total Expenses, FY 2006-20: 102.7% 2022 Workers’ Comp Index Rate: 1.67 Selected Top Projects by Capital Investment COMPANY CITY INVESTMENT $M Highland Pellets Millinocket 250 TimberHP by GO Lab Madison 125 L. L. Bean Freeport 110 Biofi ne Technology LLC Lincoln 100 F. W. Webb Co. Lewiston 11 Source: Conway Projects Database 132 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION G overnor Janet Mills delivered on her promise. Maine did not wait. Since the state’s Climate Action Plan, Maine Won’t Wait, was released in December , the Pine Tree State has steadily worked toward achieving the initiative’s goals. e four- year plan outlines actionable strategies to emit less carbon, produce energy from renewable sources and protect Maine’s natural resources and wildlife. Within the last year, Maine has secured multiple projects to diversify its alternative energy network. In November , DG Fuels, an emerging leader in the production of cellulosic drop-in sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), announced that it was locating its second SAF facility in Aroostook County. e company has secured a ,-acre site for this project and expects to break ground in summer . DG Fuels has also partnered with HydrogenPro, a leading supplier of alkaline electrolyzer technology and systems, to supply its locations in Maine and Louisiana with water electrolyzers. Both locations are set to have an initial output of approximately million gallons of SAF per year, which has the potential to remove . million tons of CO from the atmosphere annually. “SAF will play a vital role in decarbonizing the aviation industry, especially because it can be mixed with conventional fuel today without the companies having to make big investments in engines or fuel tanks,” said Richard Espeseth, interim CEO and founder of HydrogenPro, in November . “We look forward to supplying the green hydrogen technology that will fuel the shift within the aviation industry.” In March, the Lincoln Town Council approved a -plus-year lease with Biofi ne Developments Northeast (BDNE), a company that produces by LINDSAY LOPP lindsay.lopp@conway.com 132 JULY 2023 SITE SELECTION Off shore wind has the potential to generate $109 billion in private investment by 2030. Photo courtesy of University of Maine100% renewable chemicals and biofuels from cellulose. Through this agreement, BDNE has partnered with the Town of Lincoln to construct a biofuels refinery on a site formerly home to the Lincoln Pulp & Tissue Mill. According to the official press release, phase one of this project will require a private-sector investment of over $100 million. By the time the project is completed, BDNE expects to create 500 new jobs, with 160 introduced during the first phase. Construction is scheduled to begin in July 2024. Windfall On and Offshore Maine’s natural resources offer great potential for off- and onshore wind developments. Its neighbors, New Hampshire and Massachusetts are equally poised to profit from this expanding industry. So, the Pine Tree State is saddling up to get ahead of the game. This February, the Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) launched the Maine Offshore Wind Roadmap. This 18-month, stakeholder-driven comprehensive plan charts a course for Maine to actualize economic, energy and climate benefits from offshore wind while coexisting with the Gulf of Maine’s communities, fisheries and wildlife. The initiative is supported by a $2.1 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Currently, Maine has 80 companies affiliated with the offshore wind industry, which has the potential to generate $109 billion in private investment by 2030. In August 2022, as part of the Biden- Harris administration’s goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030, the Department of the Interior released a “Request for Interest” (RFI) to indicate whether commercial interest existed for obtaining wind energy leases within an area that spans around 13.6 million acres in the Gulf of Maine. Following this announcement, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) worked with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) to conduct a spatial analysis of the area mentioned in the RFI. After gathering feedback from tribes, states, existing ocean users and the public, the area the RFI included was reduced to 9.8 million acres. SITE SELECTION JULY 2023 133Next >