Moses Lake faces power crunch amid manufacturing boom
In recent years, well-funded battery technology companies like Group14 Technologies, Sila and OneD Battery Sciences have all planted their flags in Moses Lake and Grant County, and they all plan to continue making investments there. Major draws for these companies were the town’s strong industrial labor pool and cheap electrical power.
Generating enough power for these companies’ big-picture ambitions, however, is proving to be a major hurdle. It’s a crucial sticking point to keeping them committed to the area long-term.
“We’re now starting to get a lot of pressure from our industries that we recruited in to help solve that issue,” said Richard Hanover, director of business development for the Port of Moses Lake. “Our entire premise is economic vitality, so when we have these industries looking at us to help solve this issue, now our feet are being set to the fire to figure this out.”
In an October presentation to the Washington House Environment and Energy Committee, the Grant County Public Utility District said it can generate more than 2,100 megawatts of carbon-free power. Grant County municipalities, however, are requesting an additional 2,897 megawatts to meet their future needs.
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2024/10/10/moses-lake-power-grant-pud-battery-sila-group14.html