Central Washington faces challenges, opportunities with growing renewable tech industry

MOSES LAKE – Once known primarily for agriculture, Grant County is fast becoming a hub for electric vehicle batteries and green technology.

Abundant space, cheap electricity and government funding are powering the transition.

But with rapid growth comes some challenges, U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse said at a forum Friday with employees of Sila Nanotechnology, a battery part manufacturer in Moses Lake.

“This community is growing,” said Alex Fitzsimmons, Sila’s head of government affairs. “There’s a lot more manufacturing coming into the county and Sila is just a microcosm of that.”

The Alameda, California-based company is renovating a 600,000 square-foot factory in Moses Lake with plans to create as many as 500 new jobs to manufacture silicon anodes to be used in lithium-ion batteries. Silicon anodes are a cutting-edge technology that could replace graphite anodes, which are less efficient and mostly manufactured in China.

A $100 million grant from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is partially funding the renovation. Sila expects to begin production in January 2026, plant manager Rosendo Alvarado said.

Sila has contracts to supply Mercedes-Benz and Panasonic Energy, an electric vehicle battery producer.

It’s not the only battery-related company with big plans. Last month, Group14 Technologies was awarded a $200 million grant – also from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – to build a silane gas plant down the street that will come with 150 jobs. Silane gas is needed to produce silicon anodes.

Yet another Moses Lake company, REC Silicon, is supplying Sila with its silane gas.

Much of the world’s silane gas is also produced in China.

Newhouse, a member of the U.S. House’s bipartisan Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said it is important for the U.S. supply chain to become less reliant on China. The Chinese government can use that reliance as leverage against the U.S., he said.

“That’s where companies like Sila can help,” Fitzsimmons said. “If Sila is successful, the U.S. will have a stronger supply chain.”

For Central Washington, Newhouse said two top challenges with these growing industries are training a skilled workforce to meet the demand and securing sources of energy.

To help train and recruit employees, Sila is partnering with local high schools and vocational training programs, as well as Big Bend Community College and Columbia Basin College.

Newhouse said it is important to defend the Snake River dams, a major source of renewable hydropower.

If the dams were removed, “that would take the legs right out from under this region if we start losing a very valuable source of electric power,” Newhouse said.

Newhouse pointed to the state’s projected population growth, saying the need for electricity sources is only going to increase.

“We need to attract more sources of energy, not detract from what we already have,” Newhouse said. He said this can be done alongside preserving salmon.

“I think it is important we allow the human species to continue to thrive too. I think we can do both,” Newhouse said.

Dan Roach, the director of the Port of Moses Lake, said the economic development organization is working hard to identify additional power sources. While abundant affordable hydropower fueled the initial tech boom, growing demand will be a challenge to meet.

“We don’t have an answer right now,” Roach said. “We are looking at all options.”