Calisolar Crosses Major Hurdle; One Step Closer to Adding Jobs in Richland County
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, announced that Calisolar has received a $275 million conditional loan guarantee from the Department of Energy (DOE) to help build a solar products manufacturing facility in Ontario, Ohio.
"Calisolar has crossed a major hurdle and has taken a big step towards creating much-needed jobs in Richland County. I am pleased to have worked with Calisolar and DOE to advance this project and am hopeful that this announcement will act as a catalyst for a quick agreement between Calisolar and RACER Trust on the sale of the former GM facility in Ontario needed to get this project moving," said Portman.
Senator Portman spoke with Calisolar Chairman John Correnti about this project following his election in 2010 and has been advocating for the project with DOE since being sworn-in in January. In a meeting on January 26, 2011 and in a call following on April 11, 2011, Portman urged Energy Secretary Steven Chu to move forward on the loan guarantee, highlighting the strong local support for the project and the jobs it would bring to Northeast Ohio. Additionally, Portman has been in frequent communication with representatives from Calisolar and local leaders in Ontario on the status of this project.
Should this project move forward, it will be an estimated total investment of around $750 million dollars in Ohio, creating between 830 to 1,100 jobs with an annual local payroll of $37 million dollars. In addition, the project will support up to 1,000 construction jobs.
General Motors Liquidation transferred control of the property in Ontario to the Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response Trust (RACER) Trust in March of this year. The RACER Trust was established to help deal with contamination issues and position former General Motors sites for redevelopment following its 2009 bankruptcy. More information can be found at www.racertrust.org.
Calisolar needs to gain control of this facility, break ground, and fulfill the requirements of the conditional commitment before September 30th, when any money left in this particular loan guarantee program reverts back to the Treasury.