French nuclear firm Areva officially opened its new U.S. headquarters last week after moving its corporate offices from suburban Washington, D.C., to North Carolina.
Executives and local dignitaries held a ceremony Thursday at Areva's new headquarters and customer conference center in Charlotte. According to a release, additional space for training and more offices will open later this fall. Areva opened a new nuclear safety testing facility at its complex in Lynchburg, Va., last year and also operates a fuel fabrication facility in Richland, Wash., and a custom fabrication business through subsidiary Columbiana Hi Tech in Greensboro, N.C.
Charlotte was already home to Areva's U.S. operational center. In announcing the move earlier this year, Areva said its workforce in Charlotte would eventually grow to 692, including 130 positions from its former corporate headquarters in Bethesda, Md. In return, the company will receive up to $2.5 million from the state of North Carolina over nine years.