GREENVILLE, S.C. -- The U.S. Transportation Secretary toured an Upstate company Thursday, and praised its innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood the Proterra, Inc. toured the manufacturing facility in Greenville. Proterra manufactures battery-powered, fast-charging transit buses.

Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff and Proterra, Inc. CEO Jeff Granato joined LaHood for the facility tour.

LaHood said, "President Obama has called for a new era of American innovation and competition, and that's exactly what is on display at Proterra's new battery-powered bus manufacturing facility. Thanks to smart government investments and private sector creativity, the buses of the future are being conceived and built by skilled American workers and engineers."

Proterra, Inc. began as a small research and development company in Golden, Colorado in 2004. With the help of researchers at the nonprofit Center for Transportation and Environment and a $6.5 million research grant provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Transit Administration, Proterra is leading the way in manufacturing greener, cleaner transit.

Proterra is also becoming one of Greenville's top employers, on track to hire an additional 250 workers this year alone.

"We are honored to be recognized by the USDOT and Secretary LaHood for our efforts to enable a future less dependent on fossil fuels, promote US innovation, and reinforce a new wave of domestic green-energy jobs," said Jeff Granato, President and CEO of Proterra. "All of us at Proterra are invigorated by the real opportunity we see to influence the global transit industry."

Proterra expects to produce about 80 electric buses this year, plus charging stations, and is fielding inquiries about its products from around the world.

The first new electric buses are already on the street in southern California, helping the state reduce emissions and achieve its clean-air goals.

Next year, Proterra plans to move its operations into a new larger assembly plant at the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research nearby, where the company will collaborate with the faculty to research new technologies and to train the next generation of transportation scientists and engineers.