Eastern Va. Big Deal: Chesapeake’s LS GreenLink plant will have high profile

Soon, the tallest building between Philadelphia and Charlotte, North Carolina, will be located not in an urban center but on the banks of the Elizabeth River in Chesapeake.

Groundbreaking is expected to begin as early as March on LS GreenLink USA’s $681 million offshore wind subsea cable manufacturing facility, the first in the United States. Its 750,000-square-foot production facility will include a 660-foot tower, which is necessary to support the production of massive cables that can be “tens of miles long,” says Patrick Shim, the company’s managing director.

Announced in July 2024, the company is a subsidiary of South Korea’s LS Cable & System and is expected to employ more than 330 people, including about 250 who will work in manufacturing. The announcement represents the largest economic deal in Chesapeake’s history, says Steven Wright, the city’s economic development director.

“There’s an opportunity for a lot of people in Chesapeake and Hampton Roads to work for a wonderful international company that’s setting up shop in our city,” Wright says. “So, we could not be more thrilled about it.”

While the announcement helped to raise the visibility of the city, Wright says, it’s also validated the collective work by the region to become recognized as a leader in the offshore wind industry, adds Matt Smith, director of energy and emerging technology for the Hampton Roads Alliance, a regional economic development organization. Smith points to projects, including expansions at the Port of Virginia and Dominion Energy’s $10.8 billion, 2.6-megawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, that are taking shape off the coast of Virginia Beach, as well as workforce training for industry jobs.

“In order to develop a domestic supply chain, you need that kind of pipeline of projects,” Smith says.
Hampton Roads is in a unique position to be able to offer sizeable tracts of land that combine deep water access with the ability to develop, Smith adds. LS GreenLink purchased 100 acres for its development, and Smith says the region has two or three more spots where it hopes to land more anchor companies. The decision by the company to locate in Hampton Roads “also provides a focus for us to kind of go after additional suppliers that may want to be located near LS [GreenLink],” Smith adds.

“It’s a major achievement and kind of an anchor that we plan to build around, but then also fits into what we want to be more broadly, in that we’re a region that wants to support the offshore wind industry as a whole on the East Coast,” he says.

LS GreenLink is already in high demand as the company arrives in Chesapeake. It has a yearslong backlog, with a wait time that can stretch as long as eight years, Shim says.

“It’s not something that someone can just order today and get it tomorrow,” Shim says.

The company is eager to get moving.

LS GreenLink expects to be in full operation here in early 2028, Shim says, and is already in the process of hiring its first employees, including an accounting manager and front office staff. While most of the hiring is expected to occur in 2027, the company is nonetheless accepting resumes through a website set up through the Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, an incentive through the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.

LS GreenLink’s new tower will also offer a vantage point across Hampton Roads, with a conference center or event space planned at about 640 feet up, Shim says. The company is working closely with the Navy out of the military branch’s concerns about surveillance and protecting its operations, he adds.

And while President Donald Trump has promised to kill offshore wind projects, Shim says the company is not worried. The new facility will take several years to build, and its cables are “not tied to any existing projects,” he says, adding he believes the new administration will come around to see the value in offshore wind as the country seeks new energy sources.

Looking ahead, LS GreenLink’s new facility will comprise only about 45% of its property, hinting at growth to come.

“There are future development plans, and we’re already planning on expansions we just haven’t announced,” Shim says.