Clarksville, TN – More than 1,600 construction workers are currently active at Hemlock Semiconductor Group’s Clarksville, TN site as construction of the administration building nears completion. Warehouse, maintenance buildings, and other support facilities will be finished later this year and production facilities will be complete in 2012.

The $1.2 billion plant is scheduled to begin producing polysilicon, the cornerstone material for solar cells, in late 2012. The Clarksville Hemlock Semiconductor facility will meet the needs of the growing solar industry.

“The manufacturing campus is taking shape,” said Jim Russo, project director, Hemlock Semiconductor. “It’s a big change from last year when you could see only a few buildings on the site.”

Russo says that all construction trades are needed but the emphasis is shifting to pipefitters and electricians. Information about construction jobs is available through the Montgomery County Career Center.

Professional and operations employees will move into the administration building, known as the Hemlock Semiconductor Solar Center, in late spring and summer of 2011. The Hemlock Semiconductor Solar Center will be considered for LEEDS certification by the United States Green Building Council, as it features natural lighting, water conserving plumbing fixtures,and roof-top solar panels.

Hiring is underway for the 500 full-time employees who will operate the plant when it begins producing polysilicon in 2012. Available positions include production operators; degreed and experienced chemical, electrical and mechanical engineers; and skilled trades such as instrumentation and welding.

Job openings are posted at www.hscpoly.com. Resumes must be submitted online.

About Hemlock Semiconductor Group

The Hemlock Semiconductor Group (hscpoly.com) – Hemlock Semiconductor – is comprised of two joint ventures: Hemlock Semiconductor Corporation and Hemlock Semiconductor, L.L.C. The companies are joint ventures of Dow Corning Corporation, Shin-Etsu Handotai and Mitsubishi Materials Corporation. Hemlock Semiconductor is a leading provider of polycrystalline silicon and other silicon-based products used in the manufacturing of semiconductor devices and solar cells and modules. Hemlock Semiconductor began its
Michigan operations in 1961 and broke ground at its Tennessee location in 2009.

HSC and Hemlock Semiconductor are trademarks of Dow Corning Corporation.

About Dow Corning

Dow Corning (www.dowcorning.com) provides performance-enhancing solutions to serve the diverse needs of more than 25,000 customers worldwide. A global leader insilicones, silicon-based technology andinnovation, Dow Corning offers more than 7,000 products and services via the company’s Dow Corning® and XIAMETER® (www.xiameter.com) brands. Dow Corning is equally owned byThe Dow Chemical Company andCorning, Incorporated. More than half of Dow Corning’s annual sales are outside the United States. Dow Corning’s global operations adhere to the American Chemistry Council’s Responsible Care® initiative, a stringent set of standards designed to advance the safe and secure management of chemical products and processes.

Dow Corning is a registered trademark of Dow Corning Corporation. We help you invent the future is a trademark of Dow Corning Corporation. XIAMETER is a registered trademark of Dow Corning Corporation.

Business Facilities Magazine's Award Presentation

Ted Coene, co-president of Group C Media, the publisher of Business Facilities, and senior account executive Ben Nachsin were on hand to present the award to the Economic Development Council, represented by EDC Chairman Mark Holleman; the Industrial Development Board, represented by current Chairman Bryce Sanders and Past Chairman Sammy Stuard; Montgomery County Mayor Carolyn Bowers; and City Mayor Johnny Piper who was represented by City Councilman David Allen, due an unavoidable conflict.

Coene noted that Dow Corning’s site search spanned 70 potential building sites on five continents. “Clarksville was among 19 big-ticket projects in the running for this award,” said Coene, adding that bringing Hemlock to Clarksville also played a big part in Tennessee being named 2009 State of the Year for economic development. The magazine cites the state’s aggressive and creative development effort that defied the economic downturn with a series of multi-billion-dollar projects. Tennessee beat out Virginia, South Carolina, Louisiana and North Carolina for the title. Governor Phil Bredesen will be formally presented with the award today.

Holleman praised the partnership between the community, city and county leaders, and Hemlock officials. “We all worked together to make this happen. And it affirms what we’ve known all along, that Clarksville is indeed the best city in the world to live in.”

James Chavez, President & CEO of the EDC, also stressed the collaborative effort of many people in making the historic deal become a reality. “This award belongs to the community, to those who typically go unrecognized for all they contributed to the search process, and for the role our private sector and elected officials played in ensuring that we were prepared.”

An SRO crowd at APSU gets offical word on a $1.2 billion industrial development megasite

A “Who’s Who” roster of state, county and local government officials  and business leaders from Michigan and Montgomery County gathered on the Austin Peay State University campus  for the “historic” official announcement of Hemlock Semiconductor Corporation and Hemlock Semiconductor LLC multi-billion dollar development at Clarksville’s megasite in the northeastern edge of the city.

This is a “watershed of economic development in Tennessee,” said Matt Kessner of the Economic Development Council. “New jobs  in the development of sustainable energy.”

After a two-year global site search, Dow Corning and the Hemlock group opted to make an initial $1.2 billion initial investment in the construction of  a new polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon) manufacturing and development facility. Polysilicon is key to the development of solar industry. Groundbreaking on the new plant is expect early in 2009, creating  up to 1,000  jobs in construction and related crafts during the building phase; the facility is earmarked to open in 2012.

Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen  joined Hemlock’s CEO and President  Rick Doornbos in making the announcement. “It’s the right company in the right community at the right time,” Bredesen said of what will ultimately be a $2 billion investment.  “What they make is what has to happen to make solar energy. The numbers are staggering.” Bredensen noted that t is not simply the immediate creation of new job but the ability to also attract related industries and  suppliers to the state and the region.

“This announcement offers solar industry leaders confidences that polysilicon supply will be available as the solar and electronics industries continue to grow and innovate. The exact scale of this investment will be determined by market conditions. Making this investment in today’s volatile economic climate is a testament to both the long term outlook of the solar industry, as well as Hemlock Semiconductor’s ability to add capacity to meet the needs of customers.” — Rick Doornbos

Doornbos said his frm looked at “over two dozen sites around the world” before settling on Clarksville and cited the importance not just location but the community itself as key to the final decision.

Polysilicon is used in the production of everything from cell phone and computers to solar panels.  The total investment by Hemlock in Clarksville will be at least $2.5 billion and at its onset of production will initially produce  1o,000 metric tons of capacity at the site, with the potential to expand to a production level of 21,000 metric tons. When the site is ready in 2012, some 500 permanent jobs will be created, with a potential increase to 800 when expanded. Construction of the site will employ 1,000 workers  over a five to seven year period.

Most of the polysilicon produced at the Clarksville site will be consumed by firms in the solar industry but the facility will also be capable of producing pure silicon for the electronics industry as well as solar-grade material.  The energy required for polysilicon manufacturing will be recouped “eight to fifteen times over” in future use and applications, Doornbos said.

Stephanie A. Burns, Dow Corning’s President and CEO, said her company was “committing our resources, know-how and technology because we are confident that solar technology represents a tremendous opportunity for both clean energy and economic growth.

In conjunction with this new industrial development, APSU has received a $6.4 million grant to develop and implement training programs in related fields from microbiology to engineering.

“We are (making this investment) for a 21st century America. We will retrain workers. We will encourage solar investment and call for a national commitment to environmentally responsible and renewable energy goals.”

Clarksville Mayor Johnny Piper thanked the hundreds of people involved in bringing this industry to the city.

During the announcement, Hemlock and Dow Corning presented two checks of $25,000 each to the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System and to the Imagination Library as an indicator of the start of their investment in the social fabric of the community.

Partners in this business venture are:

Hemlock Semiconductor Corporation headquartered in Hemlock, Michigan. The company has produced high-purity polysilicon for over 45 years.

Henlock Semiconductor LLC is a newly formed venture between Dow Corning Corporation, Shin-Etsu Handotai, and Mitsubishi Materials Corporations.

Dow Corning Corporation is a global leader in polysilicon innovation and technology. Dow Corning of Midland, Michigan, which manufacturses more than 7,000 products and services, is a joint venture owned  by Dow Chemical Company and Corning Inc.