BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday the New York Power Authority's Board of Trustees has approved four economic development awards that will support nearly 600 jobs in Erie and Niagara counties.
Officials say the awards will also lead to $356 million in private capital investments across Western New York.
11,650 kilowatts of low-cost hydropower from NYPA's Niagara Power Project in Lewiston will be awarded to Stavatti Aerospace and Trek in Niagara County and to Life Technologies and Sucro Real Estate NY in Erie County. The companies will use the power to create or expand facilities and hire new workers.
"COVID-19 has caused widespread damage to our economy that shouldn't be swept under the rug, and it will take a concerted effort from government and the private sector to facilitate new economic development opportunities for all New Yorkers and bring our state back," Governor Cuomo said. "These low-cost power allocations will help four innovative companies to break ground on new projects, create hundreds of good jobs and invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the Western New York economy. Our state's economy is reeling, but we will bring it back stronger than ever before."
"Like thousands of Western New Yorkers, my father and grandfather worked at the Bethlehem Steel plant, and my grandmother worked during the war effort in aerospace manufacturing," said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. "For families like mine who lived through the industrial decline of Western New York, today's announcement signals a long overdue rebirth of highly visible abandoned properties and support for businesses. Not only will these allocations create good-paying jobs, they will further unleash the full potential of Western New York as an economic powerhouse for the post-pandemic future."
The awards are as follows:
- Stavatti Aerospace in Niagara Falls, an aircraft manufacturer focused on the design and production of military, commercial, and general aviation aircraft, was awarded a 2,700-kW hydropower allocation to create 363 jobs and invest up to $156 million to establish an aircraft research, design, and prototyping facility at Niagara Falls International Airport. The project is expected to be completed in 2022.
- Trek in Lockport, a manufacturer of electrostatic measurement and high voltage solutions, was awarded a 350-kW hydropower allocation to create 30 jobs and invest $6 million to establish a new center at its existing facility that would allow the company to centralize engineering resources, develop new manufacturing capabilities, and eliminate redundancies within its organization.
- Life Technologies in Grand Island, a subsidiary of Thermo Fisher Scientific, is a producer of cell culture products for the pharmaceutical industry. The firm was awarded a 3,600-kW hydropower allocation to create 140 jobs and invest $175 million to construct a 43,500 square foot addition to its Grand Island plant to accommodate the production of animal origin free and advanced granulation technology products. The project would also support an upgraded water for injection system to increase the production capacity of approximately 12,000 square feet of renovated space. Life Technologies will be undertaking construction on the expansion later this year.
- Sucro Real Estate NY was awarded a 5,000-kW hydropower allocation to establish a full-scale sugar refinery at the former Bethlehem Steel site in Lackawanna, creating 50 jobs and a capital investment of $19 million. The new plant will produce organic and conventional refined sugar as bulk and packaged products in both granular and liquid forms. The project site encompasses 12 acres, which includes three large buildings requiring extensive renovations. Sucro is planning to begin construction on multiple phases of the project in 2021.
