Two of Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway companies are teaming up to build a manufacturing hub that will include a $500 million factory to produce titanium for aircraft parts. It will be powered by solar panels and rechargeable batteries. The Buffett name and the promise of 300 jobs helped the companies overcome resistance in a state where coal provides more than 90% of the electricity.

West Virginia's new pro-solar legislation and IRA incentives have unleashed a number of solar projects. In 2020, the state had about 10 megawatts of solar capacity, compared with more than 6,000 megawatts of capacity that could come from projects now planned. The Berkshire solar farm is expected to produce about 100 megawatts.

'Everyone wants a Berkshire deal,' said Mitch Carmichael, the Republican head of the state's economic development department, who worked closely with the Berkshire companies on the project. His father had worked at the abandoned aluminum plant that will house part of the new complex.

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