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General Electric's wind energy center could fuel Michigan's alternative-energy-based revival

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

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Alternative Energy, Sustainability, Wind Energy

Ann Arbor

Michigan�s alternative energy future, and the jobs accompany it, are coming soon to a place near you.

Excerpt:

Michigan - already a step of ahead most of the country in developing a battery industry and solar energy industry - is about to take a considerable step toward becoming a national leader in wind energy technology.

General Electric today said it would hire some 1,100 workers at a research and production center in Van Buren Township in western Wayne County -- an operation that will focus heavily on renewable energy, especially wind energy technology.

GE's decision to invest $100 million in the operation represents a validation of Michigan's aggressive pursuit of green technology industries and illustrates the power of Michigan's engineering workforce.

It's fair to assume that GE identified Michigan as an engineering powerhouse where white-collar labor is particularly cheap. (GE CEO Jeff Immelt was expected to discuss the investment at a speech at 1:15 p.m. at the Detroit Economic Club.)

Earlier this year, Ann Arbor-based think tank Michigan Future Inc. issued a report suggesting that Michigan's low-paid, high-knowledge workforce could eventually become an asset. I suspect that GE's decision to locate the operation in Michigan, instead of California or New York, for example, is at least partly reflective of Michigan's cost-effective labor pool.

Read the rest of the story here and more here.