Tim Curran, President of Alstom Power.Alstom Power’s president said Wednesday the company’s new Chattanooga factory remains on track to hit the 350-job mark as it builds more components for natural gas plants.
“We’re seeing there will be a rush to gas in new equipment installations, and we’ll be ready with our factory to participate,” said Tim Curran, the company’s U.S. president.
Curran, who was in Chattanooga to dedicate a $480,000 solar power array outside its boiler operation off Riverfront Parkway, said it may take two to three years to get to a full workforce. The new factory currently has about 230 workers, in addition to the 500 employeees at Alstom’s boiler facility in Chattanooga.
Curran said in an interview that abundant natural gas reserves in the United States are driving down fuel costs. The price of natural gas dropped this week to a 10-year low with futures priced only half the level of last summer.
The installation of gas-powered plants also is a lot less than nuclear, Curran said.