Illuminate USA
Photo credit: Illuminate USA
In March 2023, Invenergy announced plans to invest more than $600 million through Illuminate USA to create one of the largest solar panel production facilities in the country. The investment included acquiring and building out a 1.1 million-square-foot building in the Pataskala Corporate Park.
At the time of the announcement, Illuminate USA committed to bring 850 good-paying jobs to Licking County; surprisingly, it is now expected to create 1,000 jobs at full production. Landing a project of this magnitude did not happen overnight. The preparation of the Pataskala Corporate Park has been a 15+ year process. Years of roadwork and infrastructure improvements headed by the Licking County Commissioners were done in preparation for future development. The building that now houses Illuminate USA was originally a speculative development venture by Red Rock Developments.
Why Pataskala? Why Ohio?
When we asked Illuminate USA the reasons that brought them to locate in Pataskala, the answer was the people, proximity, and partnerships. Ohio is a manufacturing powerhouse with a manufacturing-oriented workforce and exceptional training programs for manufacturing skills. Ohio is also within a day’s drive to half the nation’s population, allowing products to be easily transported along existing infrastructure. Illuminate USA said the state’s economic development entity, JobsOhio, is one of the best in the country and its local network of partners is a great resource, including GROW Licking County, OhioMeansJobs, and IMPACT Community Action.
Bringing Jobs to our Local Workforce
Photo credit: Illuminate USA
Justin Barnhart went to Reynoldsburg High School and lives five minutes from Illuminate USA. He went to Cleveland State for his engineering degree and while most of his colleagues went to other states for jobs, he applied to Illuminate USA. Now he is excited about working with the most advanced manufacturing technology in the state, making almost 10 million solar panels a year at full capacity, close to home.
“Illuminate USA lets us keep our kids here,” said Pataskala Mayor Mike Compton.
Illuminate USA’s partnership with OhioMeansJobs Licking County allowed them to promote available jobs and host hiring events, exceeding expectations by being fully staffed prior to the start of production.
