A cable transportation company expects to open next year its largest operation in the United States in a new facility in Utah.

Leitner-Poma of America recently purchased 5 acres in Grand Junction to also expand an operation that already includes a 100,000-square-foot facility.

Officials with Leitner-Poma joined Utah Lt. Gov. Diedre Henderson, Tooele Mayor Debbie Winn and others in a ground breaking ceremony at the new campus in Tooele, about 35 miles southwest of Salt Lake City.

“Today we are thrilled to mark a new era of our company here in Tooele,” said Daren Cole, president of Leitner-Poma. “We are really invested in the state of Utah and the resort industry. We are focused on made in America here in Utah and the U.S. We are doubling down on making 85 percent to 90 percent of our equipment right here in Utah and next door in Grand Junction.”

Henderson praised the development of a facility that will manufacture cable transportation systems, including those for the ski industry. “I can’t think of anything more fitting than partnering with Leitner-Poma, whose mission is to literally lift people, and Utah, whose state slogan is life elevated.”

Winn said she was grateful Leitner-Poma and the people who work for the company. “It is the people that make this happen. And it is you who’s changing the lives of the people in our community.”

The $27 million facility in Tooele is scheduled to open in May. At 130,000 square feet, the new facility will be the largest for the company in the United States and serve as headquarters for Skytrac, a subsidiary manufacturer that focuses on the design, production, installation and maintenance of fixed-grip ski lifts. The larger facility is expected to enable the company to increase production as well as expand staffing to up to 120 employees.

The new facility also will include the installation of a 162-foot-tall wind turbine capable of generating 250 kilowatts of electricity — enough to meet the needs of the operation. The wind turbine was developed by Leitwind, an affiliate company of Leitner-Poma.

The Skytrac headquarters in Utah will serve as a showcase for the technology. If market demand materializes as expected, the facility could manufacture the turbines to serve North American, Cole said.