A research and development company that creates clean energy sources is ready to begin producing their fuel cells in Jerome Township.
The Jerome Township Board of Trustees, Jonathan Alder Board of Education and Union County Commissioners each agreed to an Enterprise Zone Agreement that will provide Velocys Inc. with a 10-year, 75% tax abatement.
Brian Cody, Vice President of Manufacturing and Technology Licensing for Velocys, said his company has developed a “small reactor” that can turn waste into fuel.
He noted that his company was initially created after NASA asked Batelle Memorial Institute to research a small enough reactor that could be taken on a space flight to produce power on another planet.
The reactor Velocys created is loaded with either products from landfills or forestry waste, which is heated until it is “almost ready to burn.” Cody said the technology keeps oxygen out, preventing the material from actually burning, and instead “gasifies” the molecules. The Velocys technology collects the carbon molecules created and refines them into either jet fuel or diesel fuel.
“So, what goes into a landfill today can be turned into a fuel that a jet will use and fly with or (a) heavy machinery truck will use,” Cody recently told the Jerome Township Board of Trustees.
Batelle holds the rights to use the technology in space, while Velocys has the rights to use it on earth, Cody said.
He added that Velocys already has contracts with Southwest Airlines and British Airways.
“The technology is just so interesting… it’s just a great direction to go,” said Trustee Chair Megan Sloat.
Cody said Velocys has been doing research and development in Plain City – at 7950 Corporate Boulevard – but now needs a bigger space to actually produce the reactors.
Steve Pagura, with The Pagura Company, which will develop the new facility for Velocys on a 4-acre site at 8520 Warner Road, said Velocys has simply “outgrown their space.”
Union County-Marysville Economic Development Director Eric Phillips said the company considered sites in Texas, Alabama and Franklin County.
“It’s a great win to keep them here,” he said.
Phillips said the Enterprise Zone Agreement, which is a joint agreement between Velocys, The Pagura Company and Union County, was an important tool in keeping the company in the area.
The company will also enter into a capital lease financing agreement with the Marysville-Union County Port Authority, Phillips said, which will provide a sales tax exemption on construction and building materials.
He emphasized that more than 90% of construction materials are purchased out-of-county, so Union County will not be heavily affected by the agreement, which will save Velocys approximately $308,000.
Prior to the construction of the 52,500-square foot building, the site on Warner Road generated $1,500 in taxes annually.
After the 75% abatement, Velocys will pay $9,500 in taxes annually. The tax relief will save the company $282,810 over the course of 10 years.
Phillips added that Velocys will be a part of the Joint Economic Development District, and estimated that $470,000 will be generated in income tax over the lifespan of the 10-year abatement.
The expansion will create 19 new jobs, Phillips said, and retain more than 13. He said the average salary of the new positions will be $95,000.
Aside from bringing high-tech jobs to the area, Phillips said Velocys will provide a number of perks to the community.
He said the company will generate “minimal traffic” and will not create an influx of new residents that would impact schools.
Instead, Phillips noted that Velocys will partner with the Jonathan Alder and Tolles school districts to create curriculum and internship opportunities. The company also agreed to invest $2,000 in the JA Athletic Boosters each year the abatement is in place.
Sloat said she is “really happy to hear about the partnership with the schools.”
Likewise, Trustee Barry Adler said he is “very excited to have this type of clean energy technology” being produced in Jerome Township.
Phillips said the building pad for the facility is already in place, and construction is slated to begin either this month or in June. He said the goal is that the Velocys facility will be operational by mid-year 2023.