CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — Even amid uncertainty about the offshore wind industry in the United States, ground was ceremonially broken Monday for a submarine power transmission cable factory that will become the tallest building in Virginia.

LS GreenLink, a subsidiary of South Korean-based LS Cable System Ltd., plans to invest $700 million to build 750,000 square feet of manufacturing space on the banks of the southern branch of the Elizabeth River.

The company spent $15.1 million in March for nearly 100 acres of land located at 1213 Victory Boulevard in the Saint Juliens Annex part of the city, according the city records.

The high-voltage cables being built by the company will be used in the offshore wind industry to bring power ashore. One of the reasons the company chose to locate in the United States is due to $100 million in tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act set aside for clean energy projects.

While both the act and industry has been targeted by President Donald Trump in his second term, local leaders and company executives are moving forward with optimism.

In a scale model, LS GreenLink shows what they hope to develop on the nearly 100 acres of land just south of the Portsmouth City line in Chesapeake (WAVY Photo/Brett Hall.)

“Our order book is starting to fill well into the 2030s, reflecting the growing demand for resilient energy infrastructure,” Koo Bon-kyu, president of South Korean company LS Cable & System, said during the ceremony. Tennet, a European grid operator will be the Virginia factory’s first customer.

LS GreenLink’s investment makes it the largest economic development project in Chesapeake history and one the largest ever in Hampton Roads history.

It’s estimated more than 330 jobs will come with the project. Patrick Shim, who is the managing director of LS GreenLink, said the workforce is one of the reasons the company chose Virginia.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin, (R-Va.) was front in center as the first “cable” was connected and praised the company for its commitment to the Commonwealth. He did not, however, take questions from both the South Korean and local media about if federal policy uncertainty will challenge the project.

While both LS GreenLink leaders said they planned a joint-press conference with Youngkin and Juan Pablo Segura, the Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade, both left after the formal ceremony.

The departure left Chesapeake Mayor Rick West to field questions alone about the Trump administration’s potential funding cuts for renewable energy.

“The fact that we are so far along on this project, it makes absolutely no sense to not continue with the incentives because it is not only economically wise for us to do, but environmentally as well,” West said, adding that he recently wrote an op-ed on the issue.

Chesapeake City Council also recently endorsed a $50 million U.S. Department of Transportation Grant that would help offset the costs of designing and building a pier from the site into the Elizabeth River.

Cables will be shipped from the factory straight to the project site.

Patrick Shim, the managing director for LS GreenLink, said efforts are ongoing to make sure federal officials continue to support the project.

“One of the main reasons we came to Virginia is access to workforce,” Shim said. “We are just bringing capital and quality from South Korea.”

Shim also wanted to point out that tax credits are earned on performance.

“This is not free money, it’s based on what we do,” Shim said. “It is a big part of why we are coming here.”