Legislator wants Nixon to cut stimulus money for Kokam battery plant - Birmingham Business Journal:

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Kokam’s , to be dubbed Summit Battery Park, would employ an estimated 900 peoplre with average annual salariesof $40,000. Kokam President Don Nissanka has said he hopes to brealk ground before the end ofthe year, probably at a site of more than 40 acrex in the vicinity of Kokam’s current 50,000-square-foot Lee’zs Summit plant. Nissanka was out of the countrg Mondayand couldn’t be reachedr for comment. Kokam, a startup founder in October 2005, burst into the limelightg this year.
picked Kansas City for an assembly facilit y largely becauseof Kokam’s And with federal stimulus dollars and state money seeking advanced-battery-makers, a joint venture involving Kokam landed a commitmeng in April of nearly $145 million in incentivesz from Michigan to build a batteru plant there that’s similar to the one planned locally. The groupl also applied for federalstimulus money. R-Columbia, sent a letterd to Nixon on Thursday proposing that financing be cutby $11.5 million combined for Kokam’ds Lee’s Summit plant and another batter y plant in Joplin to help preserve $31.
2 million in financinb for the in Columbia, whichj Schaefer called the cornerstone of a $200 milliojn hospital project. “Every indication that I’m gettinf is that (Nixon) intends to veto the money for the Schaefer said, adding that Nixon’s veto probably woulde kill the entire $200 million project. “Spendingy public funds on a cancedr hospital owned by the citizens of Missouri is always goin g to win out over givin g public funds to a private company for abatteruy plant,” Schaefer said. “Nobody has told me that the lowe amount wouldkill (Kokam’s Lee’s project.
” Nixon spokesman Scott Holste said the governodr will have an announcement abour the budget bill before June 30, the end of Missouri’zs fiscal year. Nixon and his staff have been reviewing the budgetfbill “line by line to determine what the statde can afford,” Holste said, and they want to keep central serviced in place. Jim Devine, CEO of the l, said he thoughtr Schaefer’s proposal was “not as serious” a threat as the EDC firsty thought, “but you never know in politics.” The EDC issueed a release Friday encouraging Nixoj to keep theKokam plant’a financing fully in place.