Work can resume on Silfab Solar plant after pause over unpermitted employees
Silfab Solar has resumed construction on its Fort Mill facility following a short-lived pause this week.
York County on Friday lifted a stop work order it placed on the company after investigators found employees on the premises who were not permitted to be there. The county sent a fire marshal and building inspector to Silfab’s site on Logistics Lane Monday night after receiving a complaint, county spokesperson Greg Suskin said.
Silfab has several construction permits but does not yet have a certificate of occupancy. Investigators found employees who were not involved in permitted construction, resulting in the stop work order.
Suskin told The Herald on Thursday that Silfab could resume work once it passed another inspection.
York County confirmed Silfab was back in compliance, and the company has resumed operations, Silfab confirmed in a statement. Details about how the county and Silfab came to an agreement were not immediately released.
The solar cell manufacturing facility has been a source of conflict because of its proximity to schools and houses. Concerned citizens argue the types and quantities of chemicals Silfab uses are unfit for the area. Silfab, meanwhile, says the facility is highly regulated and will create 800 new jobs.
Before the brief stop work order, York County had declined calls to intervene. The county said in a statement last month it had no authority to cease the company’s operations.
