{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/press-releases/capito-manchin-wva-officials-announce-form-energy-selection-for-150-million-to-build-out-battery-factory-in-weirton", "Capito, Manchin, W.Va. Officials Announce Form Energy Selection for $150 Million to Build Out Battery Factory in Weirton", "2024-09-20", "2024", "2024-09", "Republican", "Senate", "WV", "Shelley Moore Capito", "C001047", "www.capito.senate.gov", "capito", "https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "CHARLESTON, W.Va. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, and Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.), and a number of West Virginia officials announced that Form Energy has been selected for an award negotiation of up to $150 million from the U.S. Department of Energy\u2019s (DOE) Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing and Recycling programs to support Form Factory 1 in Weirton, W.Va. The funding is part of the more than $6 billion included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to support a strong domestic battery supply chain.\n\n\u201cWhen I was crafting and negotiating the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), delivering support for manufacturing initiatives in West Virginia was an impact I knew we could make. Form Energy is providing a needed boost to the manufacturing industry in our state, specifically to the Weirton community. During my visit to the facility this summer, I saw how their embrace of new technological capabilities will help America continue to lead the way in energy innovation. This grant through the IIJA will expand Form Energy\u2019s production and workforce, and will help continue West Virginia\u2019s proud tradition of being an energy state,\u201d Ranking Member Capito said.\n\n\u201cWest Virginian workers and families have made the hard sacrifices to power our country to greatness and become a global energy leader. With today\u2019s investment from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are continuing to ensure that we are producing the materials needed to protect our nation\u2019s energy independence right here in the Mountain State,\u201d Senator Manchin said. \u201cI was proud to secure this funding and I am thrilled that Form Energy will be able to utilize it to create good-paying jobs in Weirton and help preserve our legacy as America\u2019s Energy Powerhouse for decades to come.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are incredibly grateful to the Department of Energy, Senator Manchin, Senator Moore Capito, and the many state and local leaders from West Virginia who provided pivotal support on the path to this award selection. This selection will enable us to more rapidly scale up our manufacturing capabilities and hire hundreds of skilled workers at Form Factory 1. We\u2019re proud to help contribute to the growth of a clean, domestic, and independent energy economy in America. And we\u2019re honored to do it alongside a strong local workforce, right here from West Virginia.\u201d Mateo Jaramillo, Co-Founder and CEO of Form Energy, said .\n\n\u201cWith its investment in Form Energy and Weirton, the U.S. Department of Energy is acknowledging that West Virginia is an ideal place to locate all-of-the-above energy development and manufacturing,\u201d West Virginia Secretary of Economic Development Mitch Carmichael said. \u201cThanks to the encouragement and support of Senators Manchin and Capito, this backing will ensure even greater success in the Mountain State.\u201d\n\n\u201cWith our robust history and past successes in heavy industry, the Northern Panhandle has paved the way for Form Energy and other innovative companies to be successful here in West Virginia,\u201d Anthony Clements, Executive Director of the Business Development Corporation of the Northern Panhandle, said. \u201cThis funding from the U.S. Department of Energy shows the unanimous support from our state and our United States Senators Manchin and Capito for our region. I am thrilled we have the opportunity to see Form Energy grow right here in West Virginia.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor years as a result of the decline and closure of its steel industry, the people of Weirton believed that its days as a manufacturing hub were over,\u201d West Virginia State Senator Ryan Weld said. \u201cNow, thanks to significant investments made by the State of West Virginia and the U.S. Department of Energy, along with the leadership of Senators Manchin and Capito, there is a renewed excitement for Weirton\u2019s future and the products that will be made here.\u201d\n\nBACKGROUND:\n\nThis announcement comes after Ranking Member Capito, Senator Manchin, and a group of their bipartisan colleagues sent a letter to DOE urging them to include alternative battery types, like the iron-air batteries manufactured by Form, in their grant awards. Once awarded, Form plans to use the funding to more rapidly scale up its commercial-scale manufacturing lines to produce up to 20 GWh/yr iron-air batteries and employ at least 600 employees to operate them.\n\nTo learn more about the IIJA, click here.\n\nTo learn more about DOE\u2019s Battery Manufacturing and Recycling Grants, click here.\n\n# # #", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:43:57Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/press-releases/capito-manchin-wva-officials-announce-form-energy-selection-for-150-million-to-build-out-battery-factory-in-weirton"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.8813470378518105, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}