Cheap Power Helps Industrial-Abrasives Maker Open Niagara Falls, N.Y., Plant
The Buffalo News, N.Y. --May 28
May 28--A new company will open a portion of the former SGL Carbon plant in Niagara Falls with a boost from cheap Niagara hydropower, Gov. George E. Pataki's office announced Thursday.
NFB Carbon was formed this year to acquire a portion of the site and produce
silicon carbide, an industrial abrasive. The company will spend about $3.7
million to buy and upgrade plants and equipment on 28 acres of the 38-acre site,
according to the state. The sale is expected to close in June.
The trustees of the New York Power Authority approved the allocations
Tuesday, spokesman Michael Saltzman said. Part of the output from the state's
Niagara Power Project in Lewiston is set aside for businesses in Western New
York. About 100 employers benefit from allocations of power at delivered prices
of 1.8 to 3.5 cents per kilowatt hour, a fraction of commercial rates.
The power authority also allocated 1 megawatt for Upstate Farms, a dairy
cooperative, sealing its plan to remain in the region. The maker of cottage
cheese, yogurt and buttermilk will relocate its plant from Buffalo to a new
facility in West Seneca, maintaining 127 jobs and adding seven new ones,
according to the state.
Upstate Farms will build a 165,000-square-foot facility to replace its
location on Scott Street. The Erie County Industrial Development Agency approved
a $27 million incentive package for the project in March. Owned by 330 New York
dairy farmers, the cooperative had considered moving its plant to Warren, Pa.
Eighteen area companies with 1,330 new jobs have received Niagara power since
last October, when the power authority streamlined its allocation process for
unused electricity, according to agency chairman Louis P. Ciminelli. The
available power comes from allocations that have been relinquished by other
companies. Under the streamlined process, a regional advisory board identifies
potential applicants and reviews their applications. Previously, the authority
had to wait 18 months to reallocate power, Saltzman said.
Niagara power was the focus of controversy earlier this month after State
Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi released an audit critical of the Power Authority.
The audit said profits from Niagara and another hydro plant subsidized losses on
downstate power operations. The Power Authority said it has raised downstate
rates to halt the subsidy.
-----
To see more of The Buffalo News, N.Y., or to subscribe to the newspaper, go
to http://www.buffalonews.com .
(c) 2004, The Buffalo News, N.Y. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
Business News. For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800)
661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail
reprints@krtinfo.com. SGG,