WALLER COUNTY, TX (Covering Katy News) – When Turkey based Elin Energy agreed to locate its U.S. headquarters in Waller County in September of 2023, it was not by chance. It was because leaders at the state and county level were all pulling in the same direction—creating an environment for success, according to Chief Executive Officer Ercan Kalafat.
"To be honest, the Texas Business environment is very important to us," Kalafat said. "They help us a lot. They are very business-friendly. Anytime we reached out to anyone, they always helped us."
Also Read: Waller County EDP and Elin Energy Honored at the Governor's Mansion
Companies like Elin consider many factors when deciding where to locate their operations. One of the most important is how quickly they can move from site selection to manufacturing their products.
Elin and other highly sought-after employers require sites that are nearly ready for use. Kalafat credits the help of the Waller County Economic Development Partnership and the Office of Governor Abbott for allowing his company to move rapidly from an empty building to manufacturing solar panels.
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Dennis Spellman, Covering Katy News
Two Elin employees work on the solar panel assembly line.
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Assembly line equipment at Elin Energy's Waller County facility.
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The massive Elin facility in Waller County has plenty of room for growth.
"That is how we finished this factory from start to finish in six months," Kalafat said. "I think this can only be achieved in Texas."
Also Read: Elin Energy to locate in Waller County
Elin moved into a newly constructed facility in Waller County. Originally designed as a warehouse, it was converted into a clean manufacturing facility that produces high-quality solar panels. Kalafat recently took local leaders on a tour of the 240,000-square-foot facility, which was impressive for its size and cleanliness.
The facility required numerous modifications to make the assembly line functional. The building's electrical system was rebuilt from the ground up to handle four times more power than it was designed to accommodate. Elin also upgraded the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system.
Dennis Spellman, Covering Katy News
Ercan Kalafat, Elin Energy CEO
"We have company rules," Kalafat said. "We never exceed room temperature. We are air-conditioning a 240,000-square-foot building just for our employees to feel comfortable."
However, long before Elin visited Waller County, the building blocks had to be in place to attract a world-class employer that would contribute to the county's tax base. The Turkey-based company could have located its U.S. headquarters anywhere but chose the Twinwood Business Park in Waller County.
"It was between three states, and we had a big checklist of what we wanted to achieve in our next home," Kalafat said.
The company's priorities were:
- Easy access to airports with direct access to Europe
- Easy access to rail
- Easy access to high-quality trade schools
- Easy access to a skilled workforce
- Low taxes
"Affordability of life was also important because we want our employees to have a nice place to live," Kalafat said.
He also said that avoiding flood-prone areas was high on the list of priorities.
Waller County Economic Development Partnership Executive Director Vine Yokom has spent his career helping businesses move from site selection to manufacturing.
"I have been very impressed by their ability to get up and running quickly," Yokom said.
At this time, Kalafat occupies just a tiny portion of the building they've leased. When growth happens, they will have room to expand.
"Once we are fully ramped up, we will have 500 employees here, and give or take, more than 95 percent of them will be local people," Kalafat said. “About 50 percent of our workforce is women."
"We are excited that they provide great jobs and bring a caring approach to their employees," Yokom said. "They are a welcome addition to our growing international corporate citizens."
Elin also focuses on being responsible in its manufacturing operations.
"Anything that comes out of this facility is recycled. There are no dangerous chemicals inside the facility," Kalafat said.
"Elin represents a best-in-class approach for solar panel manufacturing. As an industry leader in Turkey and Europe, they bring decades of experience to help provide a critical product for green energy production," Yokom said.
With manufacturing underway, Elin's focus now turns to partnering with trade schools and colleges to ensure an educated workforce is available in the future.
"This is our fourth factory, so we are very experienced in educating people,” Kalafat said. "We will educate the local people here and employ them."