Facility to be located at MSU expected to create hundreds of jobs

WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of Energy announced that it would locate its Facility for Rare Isotope Beams at Michigan State University. MSU was chosen to host the facility in a competitive review process in which Argonne National Laboratory was also considered.

Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers made the following statement today:

“I am elated by today’s announcement that the Department of Energy has selected Michigan State University as the site for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams. This is great news for science and wonderful news for Michigan. This facility will create hundreds of jobs, and will result in an estimated economic impact of up to a billion dollars over the next decade. In addition, we will have important, cutting-edge scientific research continuing to take place at Michigan State University. This will provide an invaluable learning environment for both graduate and undergraduate students, and will help develop the next generation of scientists in Michigan.

“I have spent years working closely with the Department of Energy on this issue, and am very pleased with the final outcome. I congratulate Konrad Gelbke, the Director of MSU’s National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, and MSU President Lou Anna Simon for their hard work and diligence in achieving this. Michigan State University prepared an excellent proposal and I congratulate the administration, faculty, staff, and students on this wonderful news.”

      More information on the role of the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams at Michigan State University may be found at http://www.nscl.msu.edu/future/isf.