Jul 3 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Ken de la Bastide Kokomo Tribune, Ind.



The vacant Getrag Transmission plant on U.S. 31 in Tipton County has a new tenant that will bring 850 jobs to the region by 2013.

President Barack Obama announced Saturday that Colorado-based Abound Solar was given a $400 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy to expand its operations in Longmont, Colo., and to purchase the Getrag building.

During his weekly radio address, Obama announced $1.85 billion in loan guarantees to two companies. The first went to Abengoa Solar, which will receive $1.45 billion to build a solar plant in Arizona.

"The second company is Abound Solar Manufacturing, which will manufacture advanced solar panels at two new plants, creating more than 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs," Obama said. "A Colorado plant is already under way, and an Indiana plant will be built in what's now an empty Chrysler [Getrag] factory. When fully operational, these plants will produce millions of state-of-the-art solar panels each year."

 Abound Solar is expected to provide up to 1,200 jobs when the plant is in full operation. The company makes state-of-the-art solar panels, which are sold for industrial and commercial applications with a large market in Europe.

The company has been negotiating with Tipton County officials for approximately nine months to bring the company to the region.

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. has worked alongside the Tipton County Commissioners, the Indiana Secretary of State's office and the U.S. Department of Energy to assist Abound Solar in finalizing its purchase of the more than 800,000 square-foot facility. The move represents a more than $500 million investment in machinery, equipment and building improvements.

"While the loss of Getrag was disappointing after so much work, the region will now add 850 new jobs -- what a great way to celebrate Independence Day," said Gov. Mitch Daniels in a press release.

A new partnership

Abound Solar's thin-film photovoltaic module manufacturing technology was born out of Colorado State University in the late 1980s. The company, which also has production operations in Longmont, Colo., expects the Tipton site, when complete, will be the largest solar panel manufacturing facility in the U.S., producing millions of panels annually.

"State and local representatives from Indiana were particularly instrumental in our efforts to finalize plans for this state-of-the-art facility and create high-paying jobs for Hoosier workers," said Steve Abely, Abound Solar chief financial officer. "We are excited about the opportunity to make America a global driver of renewable, affordable and abundant solar energy."

The company intends to hire for positions such as engineers, technicians and production associates once facility renovations begin.

"The addition of solar panel manufacturing builds on Indiana's strong clean-tech energy sector and provides many new opportunities to the Tipton community," said Mitch Roob, secretary of commerce and chief executive officer of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.

Roob said Saturday that talks with the company have been ongoing for 18 months.

"This is a terrific deal," he said, noting most of the proceeds from the sale of the building will go to contractors who weren't paid when Getrag filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009.

"We worked hard on the bankruptcy," Roob said. "The governor wanted to make sure we worked with the contractors. This is not perfect, but we're pleased with the outcome."

Roob said the Tipton location met all the criteria Abound Solar was looking for. The building was designed for high tech manufacturing, ready to move in and could address the needs of new environmental issues.

"There is no timetable for them to move in," he said. "We worked on this a long time. This was a large transaction and the federal government wanted to be sure the technology was plausible."

Sealing the deal

The IEDC offered Abound Solar, Inc. up to $11.85 million in performance-based tax credits and $250,000 in training grants based on the company's job creation plans and will also provide workforce and ombudsman assistance. Tipton County has approved additional incentives, including tax abatement for the company along with tax increment financing dollars to the land trust that owns the building.

The Getrag plant was being constructed as a joint venture between Chrysler and Germany's Getrag Transmission LLC. The plant was expected to provide up to 800 jobs, but with construction not complete in 2008, Chrysler pulled out of the agreement and filed a lawsuit against Getrag.

The bankruptcy court put the sale of the building in the hands of a trust, which represented several contractors who were unpaid for work performed at the Tipton site. The trust had until September to sell the building.

Tipton County officials provided $13 million as an incentive to lower the cost of the building to Abound Solar.

Tipton County Commissioner Jane Harper said Abound Solar selected Tipton County last September when it applied for the Department of Energy loan.

"I have been working toward the goal of bringing Abound Solar job opportunities to Tipton since April 30, 2009," Harper, president of the Tipton County Redevelopment Commission, said Saturday. "It has been a long nine months anxiously awaiting the DOE's decision and I am happy to finally hear the great news. Individuals from the local, state and federal levels all played a specific role in arriving at this juncture."

Benefits of Going green

Harper said Abound Solar is a perfect fit for Tipton County, which will pair superior crop production on re-usable land with "green" manufacturing in a unique form of economic development.

"With our predominant agricultural base, the establishment of Abound Solar at the crossroads of our community and three wind-energy companies with plans to place wind farms in our county, we can create a unique marketing opportunity in selling Tipton County and its products as the 'green' capital," she said. "This combination of distinct resources will perhaps make us the only county in the nation that is prosperous from within."

Ken Ziegler, president of the Tipton County Commissioners, said Abound Solar's advanced manufacturing process will bring jobs to Tipton County residents, increase the county's tax base and allow even more opportunities for additional industrial and commercial development in the county.

"State and county officials have worked for over a year with this company," he said. "We are grateful that our efforts have paid off, and want to thank all involved that have helped get us to this announcement today. It was a huge team effort and it was worth all the time and energy it took."

--Ken de la Bastide is the Kokomo Tribune enterprise editor. He can be reached at 765-454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@ kokomotribune.com

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