State OKs more funding for GM plant expansion

By Marc Kovac

GM’s fixed asset investments will exceed $300 million.

COLUMBUS — The state Controlling Board approved $2 million in additional funding for an expansion of General Motors’ Lordstown facility.

The funding, in the form of a rapid outreach grant, will be used by the company to buy machinery and equipment and is part of a larger incentive package state and local officials have assembled to ensure GM opts to increase its Mahoning Valley presence. The project would add 600 full-timers and retain an additional 2,400 at the facility that are categorized as at-risk.

The rapid outreach grant would go toward $117.4 million in equipment and machinery, including “engine motor compartment machining centers, inner and outer framing equipment, under body main line equipment, inner- and outer- body-side equipment, and related equipment,” according to state documents.

Additionally, “GM will make a fixed asset investment at the project site of at least $199.9 million, including $32.6 million in building renovations and $167.3 million in assembly tools,” according to documents.

Vehicle production would begin in 2010, and the expansion would come at a time when GM is cutting production at other plants, including one in southwestern Ohio.

The company’s restructuring is part of an effort to shift production to smaller, more fuel-efficient models, like its recently announced Chevy Cruze. Lordstown would be the sole U.S. location for that vehicle. Without the new model, the facility would be in danger of closing.

Last week, the state finalized about $80 million in tax credits for the project. The community is providing additional incentives, including assisting the company in assessing potential workers and, in some cases, providing direct cash payments to those who relocate.