Waukegan finalist for Netherlands-based solar panel maker’s U.S. headquarters
A remediated Superfund site on the Waukegan lakefront is a finalist for the proposed U.S. headquarters and solar panel manufacturing facilities of a Netherlands-based company.
The former Johns Manville Corp., property on the far northeast side of the city is one of two locations being considered as Solarge USA reaches the final stage of a national site selection process for its first U.S. facility.
An unspecified site in Kansas is the other potential location, a company official said last Thursday during a presentation to the Lake County Board’s finance and administrative committee, which is expected to discuss and make recommendations on potential incentives.
The initial investment in Waukegan would be $300 million in land, buildings and other costs over the first five years, according to Derek van der Vorst, CEO of Solarge USA.
“Our plan is to double that in the next 10 years,” he said.
Solarge USA makes solar panels using polymers instead of glass and aluminum and because they are half the weight of conventional panels can be used on more rooftops, van der Vorst said.
They contain no toxic materials, are completely recyclable and have a considerably lower carbon footprint to manufacture than traditional products, he added.
According to van der Vorst, the project would revitalize an underserved community that has suffered from asbestos and coal power pollution for decades.
The former Johns Manville site spans about 350 acres including the former manufacturing buildings and parking lots, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
About 150 acres of the site were used to dispose of asbestos-containing products and wastewater sludge. Operations ended in 1998 and the manufacturing buildings were demolished in 2000-2001.
The Solarge project, described as the first net-zero solar panel manufacturing facility in the U.S., would create more than 500 green energy jobs into an Illinois Climate and Equitable Jobs Act hub; create 1,000 construction jobs; and, result in training and recruitment programs in partnership with the College of Lake County.
Kansas is a greenfield site with a high level of readiness and state and community support, according to Solarge. It also has lower wages, construction costs and taxes.
The Waukegan site has unique benefits but comes with risks that cost time and money and a hassle, according to the presentation. It also has a lower level of site readiness and higher wages, costs and taxes.
But there already are a variety of incentives in play. Waukegan has provided $150,000 toward readying the site and Illinois has offered a package of incentives, van der Vorst said.
Those include a 100% refund of state income tax on employee salaries for 30 years, no sales tax on construction materials and lower or no utility taxes, he said.
County officials generally were supportive of the project and said they want to continue the conversation regarding incentives.
The company hopes to make a decision by the end of September, van der Vorst said.