President’s Message: Winter 2024

Steven G. Zylstra, President + CEO
Arizona Technology Council
SciTech Institute

When news came from Capitol Hill that the Inflation Reduction Act passed into law, we at the Arizona Technology Council were more than a little excited. With the inclusion of a clean energy component in the legislation, the Council predicted new opportunities were possible for this segment of our membership and their peers.

The results tell us we had reason to be positive.

Since the IRA became official in summer 2022, the state has gained more than $10 billion in new clean energy investments. In turn, that is expected to translate into an estimated 13,570 jobs in Arizona.

Council member companies announcing new projects are KORE Power in partnership with Siemens to build the $1.25-billion KOREPlex battery facility in Buckeye with 6,400 jobs and Phoenix-based JA Solar’s manufacturing facility creating 600 jobs through a $60-million investment.

Other projects of note are the $5.6-billion LG Energy Solutions gigafactory in Queen Creek that is expected to result in 2,800 jobs and American Battery’s gigafactory in Tucson, projected to employ 1,000 with its $1.2-billion investment.

Adding to that are the cities of Casa Grande, Coolidge and Eloy plus the town of Patagonia that have new projects coming online, resulting in facilities being built and jobs becoming available due to clean energy investments.

As you can see, Arizona is claiming its share of the national clean energy investment boom, quickly establishing itself as a powerhouse in the U.S. clean energy industry. 

Beyond our members having good news to report, the Council is playing another role by helping facilitate conversations with those who can work together to continue the momentum. For example, we recently partnered with other groups to convene the roundtable “Powering Arizona: Maximizing Historic Federal Investment for a Clean Economy.” 

The Governor’s Office of Resiliency, the key administrator of IRA grants in the state, and major Arizona employers from Honeywell Aerospace, Microsoft, Lucid Motors, KORE Power and others met at Honeywell’s Advanced Air Mobility Lab in Phoenix for this private discussion about maximizing clean energy investment in the state as they shared their plans for growth here and discussed policy challenges to fully maximize the IRA.

The state also shared updates on their progress and requests for information specific to the next stage of IRA maximization. The Office of Resiliency has been focused on grant applications, but the conversation is turning toward how we further advance loan and tax incentives.

Supporting members in their quest for success while helping bring parties together to determine what’s right for their organizations and the state, the Council and its staff are empowered by the potential of what lies ahead for Arizona in the clean energy industry and more than happy to have a seat at the table.