CADIZ, Ohio (AP) — Officials have announced plans for a magnesium plant in eastern Ohio that they say will create 200 full-time and 500 part-time jobs.

Western Magnesium Corp. representatives and elected officials gathered last week at the Cadiz Industrial Park in Harrison County to unveil a sign marking the site of the proposed 300,000 square-foot-plant to be built on the 122-acre site.

Sam Ataya, the company’s executive president and CEO, vowed an eco-friendly environment with a process for producing magnesium metal that would be “the cleanest in the world.” He said it would be the first magnesium plant built in the United States in a half-century.

Magnesium is a lightweight but durable metal used in the automotive and aviation industries.

The company worked with JobsOhio and the Harrison County Community Improvement Corp. to find the site and plans to break ground in the next 18 to 24 months.

Dale Arbaugh, president of the community improvement corporation, said the plant would also bring hundreds of jobs during the construction phase.