The Southeastern Wind Coalition has been instrumental in supporting offshore wind in North Carolina. A highlight of the Southeastern Wind Coalition’s efforts include advising the Governor’s office on offshore wind, helping to shape a recent Offshore Wind Supply Chain study and advocating for the removal of the 10-year offshore wind moratorium included in the Inflation Reduction Act. The Southeast Wind Coalition also convenes southeast utilities to discuss wind opportunities and challenges and brings together stakeholders to gain support to move offshore wind forward. 

In December 2021, Toyota selected North Carolina to build its first North American battery plant, investing $1.29 billion and creating 1,750 jobs. Overall, the initial Toyota battery plant announcement was anticipated to bolster the state economy by $9.5 billion over 20 years. In August 2022, Toyota announced an additional investment of $2.5 billion along with an additional 350 jobs, bringing their total investment to $3.8 billion and 2,100 new jobs. With an expected operational date of 2025, Toyota’s investment in North Carolina will position the state to better capture additional cleantech investments.

In March 2022, North Carolina was the recipient of outstanding economic development news, as VinFast announced it had selected North Carolina to build its $4 billion electric vehicle manufacturing plant. The project is expected to hire 7,500 employees and produce 150,000 vehicles per year. Additionally, VinFast’s presence will help North Carolina bolster its electric vehicle supply chain, which will yield additional jobs and investments, furthering the state as a cleantech leader. VinFast expects to begin production of electric vehicles in July 2024.

In September 2022, Wolfspeed—whose headquarters is located in Durham, NC— announced a $5 billon investment to create a state-of-the-art Material manufacturing facility in North Carolina to produce Silicon Carbide wafers. The semiconductor facility, which is expected to come online in 2024, will employ 1,800 North Carolinians. While making this announcement, Governor Roy Cooper expressed his excitement that the Silicon Carbide wafers manufactured in NC will be used in electric vehicles and offshore wind. The connectedness of North Carolina’s cleantech ecosystem got another boost with Wolfspeed’s new investment, helping support the cleantech-focused supply chain in our state.