The nuclear-energy firm Framatome will invest $49.4 million in its three Lynchburg-area facilities and add 515 jobs over the next few years, officials announced Thursday.
Framatome, a French company whose North American headquarters are in Lynchburg, designs, installs and services components for nuclear power plants. The company employs about 18,000 people. Of its 2,200 North American employees, about 1,300 work at its Lynchburg and Campbell County sites.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin, speaking Thursday at Framatome’s Old Forest Road location in Lynchburg, hailed the announcement as “a new chapter to an extraordinary, extraordinary book that is written by Framatome.”
“We know what feeds an economy is inspiration, grit and vision,” Youngkin said. “We know what feeds an economy is an extraordinary workforce and great locations. But what really feeds an economy is reliable, affordable and increasingly clean power.”
The expansion will involve new construction plus upgrades to existing facilities, including $5.7 million for machinery and tools and $5.3 million in furniture and fixtures, according to details provided by Lynchburg city staff. The new jobs will have an average annual salary of $120,000 plus benefits.
Kathy Williams, Framatome North America’s CEO, said in an interview that about 80% of the new jobs will be engineers, while the rest will be support staff. The hiring and upgrades will occur through 2027.
“We should be set in 2027, but we hope we won’t be stopping there,” Williams said.
Williams said all of the $49.4 million is for facility upgrades and construction and doesn’t include the cost of hiring the new employees. Besides its Old Forest Road office, Framatome has a training facility on Mill Ridge Road in Lynchburg and a location on Mt. Athos Road in Campbell County.
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership collaborated with the city of Lynchburg to secure the project for Virginia, which competed with North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Youngkin approved a $5 million state grant for the project, and the company will be eligible for state tax credits, according to the governor’s office.
Growing the nuclear power industry in Virginia has been a key part of Youngkin’s “all of the above” energy roadmap for the future.
“We are building that future right here in one of the world’s leading nuclear energy hubs in Lynchburg, Virginia,” Youngkin said.
Besides Framatome, the Lynchburg region is also home to the nuclear-industry firm BWX Technologies, which has military and commercial customers and employs about 2,600 people locally, most of whom work on Mt. Athos Road next to Framatome’s facility.
Youngkin said that he met with Framatome’s group CEO in France and its management team this past summer to discuss the expansion plans.
“And it was during that discussion that the plans that had been discussed at length by Kathy and the senior leadership team here were laid on the table,” Youngkin said Thursday. “And I have to say that from that moment on, there was nothing other than a collaborative commitment by all parties involved to get us here today.”
In attendance at Thursday’s announcement were a number of state and local public officials as well as dozens of Framatome employees.
Lynchburg Mayor Stephanie Reed said the expansion will “undoubtedly shape the future of our community and leave a lasting impact on the nuclear industry.”
“This expansion will not only create job opportunities for a skilled workforce but will also attract and cultivate talent from across the region and the nation, establishing our city as a beacon of progress and development,” Reed said.