Form Energy Gets $150 Million Federal Grant To Hire 600 Workers

Form Energy’s recently completed factory in Weirton is making batteries that can store electricity for days instead of hours.

Now, a $150 million grant from the Department of Energy will accelerate the production of those batteries and the hiring and training of 600 workers.

The grant is part of $3 billion going to 25 projects in 14 states in an effort by the Biden-Harris administration to make the country a leader in battery storage.

The funding comes from the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, supported by both U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito.

Such batteries can store power from renewable sources such as wind and solar until they’re needed on the grid. Together, they increase grid reliability and eliminate carbon emissions.

Form’s iron-oxide battery technology reduces the reliance on lithium-ion supply chains.

Weirton is a former steel town that employed thousands of workers. Manchin said on a Zoom call with reporters Friday that Form’s presence revitalizes the town and U.S. industrial might. 

“Weirton’s history is as a steel town, and the skilled steel workers who call this area home know this industry well and are uniquely suited to build Form’s iron-air batteries and help reinvigorate America’s manufacturing base,” he said. “I was proud to secure the funding, and I’m thrilled that Form Energy will be able to utilize it to create good paying jobs in Weirton and help preserve our legacy as America’s energy powerhouse for decades to come.”

Form was projected to put 750 people to work in Weirton; the plant currently employs 250. Form Energy CEO Mateo Jaramillo said the federal grant will accelerate the hiring of the next 600, and they could come from across the region.

“We sit in the Ohio River Valley, of course, and we’re in touch with two other states, Pennsylvania and Ohio,” he said. “And so we have people coming from all over the tri-state area to be a part of it.”

Jaramillo said the 500,000-square foot factory has an 18-month backlog of orders for electric utilities, but he added that the company will expand its products to serve industrial customers and data centers as well.