European companies seek stimulus money to locate in Jacksonville - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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European alternative energy companies, such as , a subsidiarh of a French company, and an Italianj biodiesel company that the has yetto identify, want to come to Jacksonvilled for some of the same reasons other Europeanb companies have recently located here: Access to the port and the growing Southeasgt market, cheaper skilled labor and manufacturing their goodse closer to American consumers. “The big guys in alternativwe energy are Europeanbecause they’ve had government support,” said Michae Breen, director of international development for Cornerstone, the chamber’s economif development arm.
“Now that we’res getting government support, it makes more sensw for them tocome over.” Government incentivess contained in the federal stimulus program are the big draw for the Saft America won’t build a $200 million facilityg at Cecil Commerce Center and employ about 800 unlesx it gets a $100 million grant throughn the stimulus package, said Peter vice president of manufacturing for the company’zs Valdosta, Ga., plant. The company expects to find out in July whethe it can tap intothe $1.5 billionb available for manufacturers of high-efficiency batteries. “We’rre pretty optimistic,” Denoncourt said.
“We’re one of the technology leadersand we’vd been building lithium-ion batteries for decades.” spokeswoman Jen Stutsman said the departmenf received 165 grant applications by the May 19 deadline. She didn’tt know the total amouny of money requested inthe applications. Like Saft the Italian company that produces biodiesel fuel from oldtiresd won’t come to town unlessw it can get tax credits from the city and incentivew through the stimulus The company, which would bring about 15 jobs, is expectefd to confirm its plans in abouyt three months.
Another Italian company that the chambeer has yet to identify extracts silicon from rice husks to buils solar panels and is also considering openint a plantin Jacksonville, Breen said. Severap European wind turbine manufacturerxs are also interested in opening plants in but their businesses are also dependenr on plugging into the alternativee industry provisions in thestimulusd package. Denoncourt said Saft America was attracted to Jacksonville because ofthe area’sz U.S. Navy-trained work force, which has the skillas needed toproduce lithium-ion batteries. The batteries will be sold to the U.S.
militar for a hybrid fleet that rangeas from trucks to The lithium-ion batteries are also increasinglyg used in passenger planes because they are abourt a third lighter than conventionak nickel-cadmium batteries and so reduce the amount of fuel the planexs use, Denoncourt said. The lithium-ion batteries that he hopes to producse in Jacksonville would also be sold to the telecommunicationss industry since their smaller size gives providers more backul power without forcing them to alter the infrastructure to handlebigger batteries. The planned manufacturing facilitu would also develop batteries capable of storingalternative energy.
If Saft America builds a facilittin Jacksonville, it would add prestigse to the area and possibl spur more alternative energy companies to consider movingv to Jacksonville, Breen said. The city recently formed a committe e headed by President Matt Kenyon to attract more alternativeenergyy companies. Aside from being certified to build energy-efficient buildings, Dana B. Kenyon is tappingy into federal stimulus fundinbg through its energyconsulting division, , which is based in Jacksonville, has alreaduy been helped by the alternativs energy provisions in the stimulux package. It expects its annuall revenue to doubleto $12 million this year, said Wayn Hildreth, the company’s president.
The company, whicn provides consulting and installation of wind turbines for schoolesand businesses, benefited from the stimulus package’es 30 percent investment tax Wind Energy expects to double its work force of nearly 30 by the end of the