Apr. 16—Pueblo — CS Wind, a South Korean-based wind tower manufacturing company, is expanding the world's largest wind tower manufacturing plant in Pueblo with plans to create 850 jobs for the city over the next several years.

The expansion of the site and job creation reinforces Pueblo's manufacturing legacy and solidifies the city's role as a key player within Colorado's economy and renewable energy infrastructure, local and state officials said during the site's ground-breaking at the start of the month.

"I couldn't be more excited about this plant's expansion," Pueblo Mayor Nick Gradisar said. "It will ensure that we will continue to have manufacturing that will make big things in Pueblo and in the United States for decades to come."

The manufacturing site was previously owned by Vestas, a Denmark-based wind manufacturer, seller, installer and servicer, which sold the plant to CS Wind in August 2021 with a threefold plan to double the site's total size to nearly 900,000 square feet.

Within the site's massive warehouses — up to a quarter of a mile long — workers cut, bend and weld pieces of metal to construct wind turbine towers, said Anthony Salerno, a production manager for CS Wind. Other warehouses on the site paint the towers and install internal components such as ladders and platforms within them.

The plant's expansion is anticipated to be finished in 2028 and will produce as many as 10,000 wind turbine tower sections per year, according to a company news release.

"This expansion investment will have a transformative impact on our environment, economy, and local Colorado society," Seong-Gon Gim, chairman of CS Wind, said in the release.

Part of that economic and environmental transformation will be augmented by incentives created by the Inflation Reduction Act, Gov. Jared Polis said.

The Inflation Reduction Act, a bill passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, offers tax credits to businesses, nonprofits, educational and governmental organizations that use solar and wind energy, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"What that means is that the market will be very strong for wind turbines," Polis said during a news conference. "So, what you build we will buy."

Pueblo's manufacturing dates to the beginning of its steel production in the early 1880s, and lives on with employers such as Evraz, a steel producer. Manufacturing has expanded to include aerospace manufacturing with employers such as Collins Aerospace and other manufacturing projects such as brick, cement and plastics.

"Manufacturing has always been important to Pueblo," Gradisar said. "And it will continue to be important here."

But Pueblo's manufacturing experienced a slowdown during COVID-19 and continues to experience challenges similar to other communities with supply chain issues and inflationary concerns, which make it more difficult to ramp up large scale manufacturing projects, said Jeffery Shaw, president and CEO of Pueblo Economic Development Corp.

Despite hindrances, Pueblo's economy is still growing as companies such as CS Wind and Evraz expand, Shaw said.

"Manufacturing is still the driver of economic development," Shaw said, later adding, "we're optimistic about it."

Some of Shaw's optimism comes from Pueblo's manufacturing assets such as water and transportation infrastructure.

"You have heavy rail lines coming through the community," Shaw said. "You've got over 400 acres of industrial park rail space available."

He also emphasized that Pueblo's and Colorado Springs share the same labor pool.

"Pueblo will be successful as (Colorado) Springs continues to be successful," Shaw said. "So, they complement each other very well."

With companies such as CS Wind coming to Pueblo, the region can attract other related industries and manufacturers, too, Shaw said. Assets such as Interstate 25 and outdoor recreation contribute to that attraction.

"The company that's expanding, that obviously helps the community grow, brings a larger economic base to it. But also it's helping the state of Colorado meet their goals and what they want to do in conjunction with those other manufacturers," Shaw said. "So it just (shows) how critical Pueblo manufacturing is not only to the community but the state of Colorado as a whole."