The need for energy that is affordable, reliable, and clean is now impossible to ignore. It sits underneath the next wave of industrial growth, and everything we’re trying to build. New energy technologies will shape where industries expand, where jobs are created, and which communities are positioned to benefit the most.

The strongest companies are proving that commercialization can create value people can see. As they build facilities, deploy projects, train workers, and partner locally, they are helping communities capture more of the upside from energy growth.

This is coming to life across the Breakthrough Energy portfolio: energy innovation can build better lives when companies make local economic value and community engagement part of how they scale. That value looks different from place to place. We’re proud of how our companies are adding value to local communities. These are just a few examples across our broad portfolio.

In Hardeeville, South Carolina, TS Conductor opened a new manufacturing facility for advanced grid conductors that can double or triple transmission capacity. The $134M plant is expected to create hundreds of direct advanced manufacturing jobs with above-average wages, and the company has partnered with SC Works and two connected programs—readySC and the SC Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW)—to support vocational training.

Across Michigan, LuxWall is expanding its footprint with high-efficiency Transparent Insulation manufacturing and research and development in Detroit, Litchfield, and Ypsilanti. The company has committed a total of $165M and 450 jobs across the state, sourcing manufacturing talent directly from local neighborhoods. Additionally, LuxWall is partnering with local organizations like Detroit at Work, Michigan Works, DESC, WIN, LIFT Detroit, HigherLRN, and Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center on talent sourcing, apprenticeship, and training programs.

In Big Stone City, South Dakota, Antora’s Project Big Stone is helping POET increase biofuel production with thermal energy storage. The project is expected to create tens of millions of dollars annually in new market opportunities for South Dakota farmers and has already created or supported over 300 jobs from Antora’s manufacturing hub in California to the project site in Big Stone City. The company is also growing in San Jose, where it has doubled its manufacturing and operations footprint.

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Pacific Fusion is establishing a major research and manufacturing campus that will host its first demonstration system; a key step toward clean, on-demand fusion power. The project will generate 200 permanent jobs, hundreds of construction roles, local and state tax revenue, and new STEM education and workforce development opportunities. 

Though many focus on the impact of Redwood Materials’ storage and recycling businesses and the benefits of their facilities in Nevada and South Carolina, less well known is how their local recycling program supports communities across Nevada. The company has partnered locally with Washoe County and Nevada Tech Hub on a statewide battery recycling initiative, deploying 20 smart receptacles that make it easier for residents to recycle used batteries, reducing fire risks and recovering critical materials for reuse.

There’s also the honest and trustworthy way that Fervo Energy engages the community of Milford, Utah. The company is advancing 24/7 geothermal power while helping a rural community build beyond boom-and-bust cycles. Its Cape Station project continues to create local careers, support nearby businesses, invest in school programs, and work with the city on housing planning as growth arrives. 

At its Mingomba copper development in Zambia, KoBold Metals has invested in the health and education of the communities around its operations. Working with local partners, KoBold built a 1x4 classroom secondary school block in Kawama, Chililabombwe in just nine weeks. The company also commissioned a new maternity annex at Kakoso Level One Hospital in Chililabombwe, expanding access to safer maternal and newborn care for mothers, babies, and families in the district.

The throughline is that these companies are successfully scaling, with real economic benefits in the places where their technologies take root.

Growth Has to Land Well

Major energy projects always change the places where they’re built. Opening a new factory can boost the local economy, creating demand for workers, and in turn, affect roads, housing, utilities, and public services. They can also bring new pressures and problems. If companies move without engaging early and communicating clearly, it can feel like growth is happening to a community rather than with it. And communities can tell the difference.

The growing backlash against data centers and other large projects offers an important lesson. Innovation can boost national competitiveness and economic growth, but local support weakens when residents see disruption before they see benefit.

Energy companies can learn from that. Clear communication about what they’re building, how it will affect the community, and how it can create lasting economic strength locally helps create a stronger foundation from the start. Starting with questions, rather than prescriptions, is important. What do communities need? What challenges do they face? Those that engage early and follow through with action will be better positioned to earn trust, and that’s the foundation of anything our companies want to achieve in the long run.

Local Value Helps Companies Scale

Local economic value is a competitive advantage. Companies need places and people that want to be a part of their growth and success. Communities need projects—and the companies that bring them—that are invested in the success of the community as it is today. That means being a part of solving local problems, enhancing daily life, and creating opportunities that last.

When those interests line up, energy innovation moves more smoothly from technical progress to commercial scale.

The most successful projects are shaped long before construction begins. They start with a company asking what a good partnership looks like in a specific area, then building around the answer. That answer can take many forms, from workforce training before a plant opens, sourcing from local businesses, assisting with housing demand, investing in schools, or creating new markets tied to the technology.

These outcomes create shared value. A well-trained workforce is an asset to any company trying to execute. Strong local relationships make projects more resilient. Tangible benefits like jobs, training programs, contracts, and new income instill greater confidence in customers, investors, and public partners that a technology can succeed in the real world. That is how trust is built.

From Innovation to Prosperity

The world needs energy innovation that can support the industries now taking shape. Communities need investment that improves lives. The best energy companies will deliver both.

At Breakthrough Energy, we back the builders developing and commercializing technologies that can outperform existing systems. That performance is measured by cost and reliability—and by whether products and projects work for customers, workers, local institutions, and the communities where growth occurs.

That is the next test for energy innovation, and one of the clearest opportunities. Companies that engage with communities can create stronger projects and markets, along with healthier local economies; delivering the affordable, reliable, clean energy that growth requires while helping more people benefit from the future being built around them.