RALEIGH – Sunlight Batteries USA, an industrial battery manufacturer and member of the Greek multinational Group Olympia, is investing $6.5 million to establish an assembly and distribution center in Greensboro.

The uptick: the creation of 46 jobs with wages reaching up to $47,978, the current average annual wage in Guilford County.

“The establishment of Sunlight in the U.S. market is a significant milestone to our growth plan,” said Robby Bourlas, chief executive officer of Sunlight Batteries, in a statement released today.

“With the launch of Sunlight Batteries USA, we create our largest assembly hub and a strategic geographic presence in a market we have been exporting to for the last six years.”

He added it’s just a “starting point.”

“We are also evaluating other strategic investment opportunities.”

Headquartered in Greece, Systems Sunlight, the parent company of Sunlight Batteries USA, has been specializing in energy storage and industrial batteries manufacturing since 1991.

Sunlight operates three state-of-the-art production facilities in Greece and Italy, and exports to more than 100 countries in all continents.

The company plans to assemble and distribute lead and lithium batteries at the Greensboro facility.

“North Carolina has the fifth largest manufacturing economy in the nation,” said North Carolina Commerce Secretary Anthony M. Copeland, in a statement. “With the largest manufacturing workforce in the Southeast and our transportation infrastructure, international companies like Sunlight Batteries will be very successful here.”

A $100,000 performance-based from the One North Carolina Fund will help facilitate Sunlight Batteries’ operation in Guilford County.

The One NC Fund provides financial assistance to local governments to help attract economic investment and to create jobs. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for payment.

All One NC grants require a matching grant from local governments and any award is contingent upon that condition being met.