Albuquerque, NM – March 3, 2008 – Mesa del Sol officials early this morning joined Dr. Udo Ungeheuer, chairman of SCHOTT’s board of management and a host of New Mexicans including Gov. Bill Richardson and Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, to break ground on SCHOTT Solar’s new 200,000 square foot solar manufacturing site.
The new facility, to be built on 80 acres at Mesa del Sol, represents a planned $500 million, long term investment by SCHOTT and employment of up 1,500 people, at full production. Overall, the total economic impact for Mesa del Sol and the state is estimated at $1 billion, as the worldwide company will produce receivers for concentrated solar power plants and photovoltaic panels. SCHOTT joins Advent Solar as the second solar manufacturer at the Mesa del Sol renewable energy cluster. This will be SCHOTT’s largest facility in the U.S.
“This is a great day as SCHOTT Solar, a global leader in solar technologies, breaks ground and starts building their North American manufacturing facility,” said Kevin Ratner of Forest City Covington, NM LLC, the master developers of Mesa del Sol. “SCHOTT is not just a tenant bringing jobs to New Mexico. They will be an important contributing member of the community and an important member of our renewable energy cluster.”
“Today’s groundbreaking reinforces all our work to-date to make Mesa del Sol a showcase for sustainable development and our vision that it is and will be a place to live work, learn and play now and well into the future,” said Ratner.
“SCHOTT is proud to be locating our flagship solar facility in the Mesa del Sol development,” stated SCHOTT’s Speaker of the Board, Dr. Ungeheuer. “The community is a model in sustainable and responsible development. New Mexico, Bernalillo County, the City of Albuquerque and Mesa del Sol are the perfect fit for SCHOTT's facility.”
“Our future is bright and we welcome SCHOTT Solar as they embrace our vision of a showcase for sustainable development,” said Ratner.
He congratulated the Mesa del Sol economic development team and strategic partners for attracting SCHOTT Solar to Albuquerque saying, “It is truly a team effort on behalf of the state, the city, the county, University of New Mexico, Community College of Central New Mexico, our federal government representatives and our economic development staff including the New Mexico Partnership, PNM and Albuquerque Economic Development.”
About Mesa del Sol
Mesa del Sol is a 12,900-acre mixed-use district located on Albuquerque’s south mesa. By combining job creation and sustainable urban community planning, Mesa del Sol will reflect a balance of environmental resources, economic objectives and social amenities in a community that is forward-looking with a highly defined sense of place.
Mesa del Sol is a true public/private partnership. In addition to Forest City Covington, NM, LLC, Mesa del Sol is being developed in conjunction with other partners, including the New Mexico State Land Office, the University of New Mexico, with the support of the City of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County and the State of New Mexico.
About Forest City Covington
Forest City Covington NM, LLC is a joint venture between Forest City NM, LLC and Covington NM, LLC. Forest City NM, LLC is a subsidiary of Forest City Enterprises. Forest City Enterprises, Inc. is a $10 billion NYSE-listed national real estate company. The Company is principally engaged in the ownership, development, management and acquisition of commercial and residential real estate and land throughout the United States. Covington NM, LLC is an affiliate company of Covington Capital Corporate, a major real estate development and investment company. Covington Capital and its affiliate companies currently own more than 13 million square feet of commercial/industrial space and are actively developing more than 17,000 acres of land in the Western United States.