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...Hotline Continued From Page 8 Faraday Future Moving Forward Faraday Future welcomed 85 new hires to the FF HQ family in August, including 26 for Hanford, CA manufacturing, as the electric car maker moved one step closer to delivering the FF 91. Over the next year the company reports an estimated 1,000 jobs will be created in the FF Han- ford factory with new employees undergo- ing business and teamwork essential train- ing at the nearby College of the Sequoias (Visalia), inside the state of Califor- nia’s Hanford Training Resource Center. New Mexico State University Lands Big Grant New Mexico State University’s SMART Grid Center has landed a $20 million grant from the National Science Foundation for more research aimed at developing sustainable systems for distributing electricity. The effort will link researchers and stu- dents from New Mexico State University, the University of New Mexico, New Mexico Tech and Santa Fe Community College with experts at Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Boeing Acquires El Segundo’s Millennium Space Systems Boeing Co. has agreed to acquire Millen- nium Space Systems Inc., an El Segundo-based small flight system developer and satellite manufacturer. Millennium Space was founded in 2001 and develops satellites for extracting missions. It employs an estimated 260 employees. Millennium Space Systems’ expertise in vertically-integrated small-satellite so- lutions perfectly complements Boeing’s ex- isting satellite portfolio, and will allow us to meet the needs of a diverse customer set,” said Leanne Caret, chief executive of Boeing’s defense, space & security program. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the third quarter, according to Boeing. Sempra to Sell Solar Assets for $1.54B Sempra Energy has agreed to sell its U.S. non-utility solar energy generation assets, one wind facility and certain battery stor- age facilities to Consolidated Edison Inc. for $1.54 billion in cash. The San Diego corporation made the announcement after the market closed on Sept. 20. The San Diego business said the sale is part of a portfolio-optimization push an- nounced in June. Sempra is also working with an activist investor group that is urging the company to focus more on its core business. The sale to Consolidated Edison includes the following facilities: Mesquite Solar 2 and 3 in Arizona; Copper Mountain Solar 1 and 4 in Nevada; Great Valley Solar in Califor- nia; and solar and battery storage develop- ment projects. Additionally, Consolidated Edison will acquire the facilities jointly owned with Sempra Renewables including: Mes- quite Solar 1; Copper Mountain Solar 2 and 3; the Alpaugh, Corcoran and White River solar facilities in California; and the Broken Bow II wind facility in Nebraska. The sale is expected to close before the end of the year. Navy Chooses Boeing Over GA- ASI, Lockheed The U.S. Navy awarded a six-year, $805 million initial contract to build its MQ-25 Stingray aircraft to Boeing Co. The program, which could ultimately be worth billions, was one that Poway, CA-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. had hoped to win. The MQ-25 will be an unmanned, carrier- based refueling aircraft. Lockheed Martin Corp. was also in the running to build it. Northrop Grumman Corp., which bases its unmanned programs in San Diego, walked away from the competition in November, saying it would not be worth its investment. Northrop Grumman built two prototype unmanned air- craft that successfully took off from and landed on a carrier deck. About $12 million worth of subcontracting work on the Boeing project will be performed in San Diego, according to a Pentagon an- nouncement. It was unclear which San Diego company would do the work. The Navy sees the MQ-25 as an in-flight re- fueling aircraft that will extend the range of the manned fighters flying off the decks of aircraft carriers. Under the deal, Boeing will design, build and support four MQ-25A unmanned air vehicles Continued on page 90