The U.S. Department of Energy announced that it is partnering with Youngstown State University and DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory to advance workforce development for the battery manufacturing industry, including here in the Valley.

The $1 million project will assist in the development of an Energy Storage Workforce Innovation Center, which will serve as a training center based in the Midwest, it was announced Thursday, Jan. 21.

The training center would support the battery and EV manufacturing industry in the northeast region of Ohio by helping supply a capable workforce. The Valley has numerous investments underway in battery and  EV manufacturing, including Lordstown Motors, BRITE Energy Innovators, the GM-LG Chem Battery Plant, and with help from Youngstown State University.

Last week, the state said it would devote some of the $5 million it had received from the $12 million settlement with General Motors to help fund the YSU project.

On Friday, U.S Rep. Tim Ryan said "This partnership is a great example of how government can work to bolster efforts on the ground in our community to dominate in the clean energy economy. The electric energy industry is not only a major key to reigniting American competitiveness but also to reigniting our workforce here in Northeast Ohio.

Ryan added, "... Our region is leading the world in creating the energy of the future and putting Voltage Valley on the map."

“We are in a period of tremendous advancement in battery technologies, presenting new opportunities for electric vehicles and energy storage systems,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. “With these new technologies and growing industries, it is essential that we prepare a workforce that will lead the next generation of energy storage technologies into practice. Our investment will help continue the region’s reputation of meeting the nation’s manufacturing needs.”

This effort goes along with the COE's Energy Storage Grand Challenge, which outlines a Department-wide strategy to accelerate innovation across a range of storage technologies and develop a skilled workforce based on three concepts: Innovate Here, Make Here, and Deploy Everywhere. 

Energy Storage Grand Challenge draws on the extensive research capabilities of the DOE National Laboratories, universities, and industry to accelerate the development of energy-storage technologies and sustain American global leadership in the energy storage technologies of the future.