Could Maryland and Montgomery County use a $1.3 billion corporate investment, 2015 high-wage jobs, and a major infusion of tax revenue? Yes! Did we win the 500,000-square-foot Microporous manufacturing facility? No! But Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin will give you three guesses as to who did. Yet again, our rival across the Potomac River has bested us in the economic development sweepstates.
Microporous, a leading manufacturer of battery separators, will construct the $1.3 billion facility in Berry Hill, Virginia. The factory will create 2015 new, high-wage jobs, and will provide more freight traffic for the Port of Virginia. Tennessee-based Microporous was founded as the American Rubber Company, which patented the first rubber battery separator in 1934. Today, their products are in high demand, as adoption of electric vehicles explodes in many countries around the world, even if demand for EVs still lags in the United States. Virginia's port will indeed see a boost in outbound traffic as a result, as Microporous is the only manufacturer of rubber battery separators used in electric automobiles and mobility devices.
“This historic $1.35 billion investment by Microporous in Pittsylvania County marks a new chapter in Virginia's incredible advanced manufacturing story,” Youngkin said in a statement yesterday. “This project not only brings over 2,000 new jobs to Southside Virginia, but also positions the Commonwealth at the forefront of our nation’s resurgence in manufacturing. Microporous' decision to establish their new facility here underscores Virginia's competitive advantages and our commitment to leading the way in innovative industries.” Youngkin's office identified North Carolina as the other finalist for the facility; it's unclear if Maryland even attempted to pursue the opportunity, or was once again asleep at the switch.
“It is with great pleasure and excitement that we welcome Microporous to the Southern Virginia Megasite and Pittsylvania County," Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors Chairman Darrell Dalton said Wednesday. “Microporous brings a new level of technological advancement to our business community as well as high paying jobs that offer another opportunity for our young people to remain and raise families in and near their hometowns. Microporous will also provide the County with added revenue to better serve our citizens. We look forward to many years of Microporous’ growth and success and Pittsylvania County is honored to be part of that journey.”
Photos courtesy Office of Gov. Glenn Youngkin
21 comments:
VA can only beat MD if MD was in the running. Maybe there isn’t any site in MD that met the requirements of the company and was never even considered. Your arguments are growing tired.
Just what MoCo, the US county with the highest percentage (29.2%) of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate degrees, really needs - a rubber factory.
Maybe these $12/hour jobs are "high paying" for wherever Pittsylvania County is, but obviously this isn't relevant to MoCo. If something like this opened here you'd immediately declare MoCo "moribund" and, for once, you'd probably be right.
A couple of thoughts. Was proximity to the Norfolk port a requirement? If so, then Maryland is immediately out. Berry Hill is very close to the NC border, so it is telling that VA and NC were the two states in the running. Also, a facility that size needs a lot space, and there may not be any plot of land in MoCo that size. Hard to say without more details.
But I'll bet we've got more apartments coming on line!
6:41: Why wouldn't we be in the running? Too busy posing at Ravens practice?
6:49: Your comment reveals you know very little about the international auto industry in 2024.
8:42: Where does it say $12?
9:06: We have room, and Hagerstown, Cumberland, etc. definitely have room. CSX runs right to the Port of Baltimore.
9:16: Ike Leggett agreed with me - we are becoming a bedroom community for the booming job centers elsewhere in our region.
Dyer @ 11:51 - Rubber Battery Separators. Small sheets of rubber, which are then used by the actual battery manufacturers to isolate the electrical terminals. Good jobs for high-school dropouts in rural southern Virginia. Do you know anything about that region?
Average pay will be close to $60,000 - I believe that is a bit more than $12/hr….
Also, Montgomery County is closer to Norfolk VA than Pittsylvania County - by a least an hour.
Do your research before commenting!
6:04: It's only been a little over a week after the election. One partly decided by non-college-educated voters, who have been destroyed by the globalist neoliberal policies of the late 20th/early 21st centuries, and are tired of unimpacted elites looking down on them. Perhaps some reflection is in order when casting aspersions on "high-school dropouts."
Cumberland and Hagerstown are among the Maryland cities destroyed by these policies. "Do you know anything about that region?"
Again, a company that is the only supplier of a critical part in EV battery manufacturing is hardly a "rubber factory." Maryland wishes it had a $1.3 billion investment coming like this. Instead, we have an Instagram governor and a do-nothing legislature. It's no wonder we continue to get crushed by the Old Dominion.
Robert Dyer @ 5:52 AM - Windshield wiper blades are also “critical parts” made from rubber. But that does not mean that these are high-skilled high-paying jobs.
@ 9:06 AM - Here is another clue to their choice of location for their new rubber factory. The company’s headquarters is in Piney Flats, Tennessee, just south of Bristol. That city, Chatham, Virginia and Norfolk are essentially in a straight line along Virginia’s depressed US 58 corridor.
Just because the C-suite pulls up the average doesn't mean the 2k factory jobs pay anything other than poverty wages. The company's website literally encourages you to go to community college to try and get a better job than the factory work they offer. MoCo absolutely shouldn't lose sleep over not being able to compete for jobs like this.
"Montgomery County is closer to Norfolk VA than Pittsylvania County - by a least an hour."
That's not even remotely true. "Do your research before commenting!"
Robert, fair enough about the rail line. My point was that if the company's rfp made proximity to Norfolk a requirement, then only VA and NC would qualify.
Another note about the choice of location - Microporous currently has two factories in the USA, one in Piney Flats, Tennessee adjacent to the headquarters mentioned previously. The other is in Danville, just 20 miles south of Chatham. To assume that Montgomery County, any other county in Maryland, or even northern or central Virginia were possible locations for this rubber factory, is odd.
Microporous was founded in 1934 as American Rubber Company. Its only product has been rubber battery separators - for lead-acid batteries from the beginning, and more recently for lithium-ion batteries.
Only the top tier of blue collar for us!
7:13: You are correct about the locations of the other facilities, but I don't see why that would prevent locating the new factory in Maryland. They're not shipping the finished product to another of their factories, they're shipping it nationwide or overseas. Both can be done from Maryland and the Port of Baltimore.
9 times out of 10, companies are going to base their decision on the cost of doing business - energy costs, tax rates, regulations, etc. 8 times out of 10, they're also going to look at infrastructure - roads, rail lines, airport access, etc. Virginia is currently beating us badly on all of those.
Post a Comment