2011_04_08_Winston-Salem Journal_iQ Power_Presseclipping

PRESSECLIPPING
Medium: Winston-Salem Journal
Datum: 08. April 2011
Yadkin to get battery plant
EAST BEND --EcoVolt Power Corp. plans to create 61 jobs and invest $20 million at an East
Bend plant during the next three years to produce environmentally friendly batteries for automotive and other uses.
"This company EcoVolt is exactly the kind of company we're looking for, and we are delighted
they are in Yadkin County," Gov. Bev Perdue said Thursday, as she joined county and town
officials to announce the company's plans to reuse the former DAC Products furniture building
on N.C. 67.
The company, headquartered in New York, plans to have the capacity in three years to process some 6 million automotive starter batteries each year, the governor said.
A $200,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund was used as an incentive for the project.
The fund provides financial assistance to attract business projects that create jobs. The company must meet job creation and investment performance standards to receive the money.
The batteries will be manufactured at plants in Ohio, Kentucky or Europe and shipped to the
East Bend plant, where workers will put in electrolytes and charge the batteries for shipping
to stores, company officials said. They hope to eventually manufacture the batteries from
start to finish in East Bend.
The plant is expected to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, said John Hoover, EcoVolt's
chief operating officer. Salaries will vary, but the average annually will be $27,982 plus benefits, which is slightly higher than Yadkin County's average annual wage of $27,716.
The company plans to ship the first batteries from the plant by the third quarter of 2011, said
Mark Leininger, EcoVolt's chairman and chief executive officer. The company plans a job fair
soon to receive applications, he said.
Leininger told the governor that he saw an Internet ad for an abandoned furniture plant in
East Bend and that the underlying reason he decided to put his company here is the quality
of the available workforce.
"Hopefully we can act as a catalyst to really create a new energy about Yadkin County and for
the people of Yadkin County," he said.
The batteries will come at a premium price, company officials said, but the lighter weight
should allow drivers to recoup the cost of the battery in fuel savings over several years. The
batteries are recyclable, use less lead and less acid than other batteries, feature a unique interior construction and are "smart" in that they recognize the amount of energy available and
regulate it in providing enough power to start a vehicle, according to company literature.
PRESSECLIPPING
East Bend Mayor Stewart Maples told EcoVolt officials that the town would do all it could to
make the company feel welcome.
"The door is always open at town hall," Maples said.
Kevin Austin, chairman of the Yadkin County Board of Commissioners, praised the county's
workforce and the quality of life in Yadkin County.
"I'm just thrilled for East Bend today," he said. "It's just a great location. Everything you
need is within a few miles. I think it's one of the best kept secrets in North Carolina."
Fresh from her announcement in Yadkin County, Perdue held a town hall-style meeting at
Winston-Salem State University that centered on what she called a key ingredient in job creation — education.
"The economy and education go hand in glove," she said.
From early childhood education to higher education, Perdue said she would fight the deep
cuts that some state legislators say they must make to such programs as Smart Start and
More at Four.
Perdue said after the question-and-answer session that cutting state funding to the UNC system by 15 percent to 20 percent, as some legislators are suggesting, would "devastate" the
state's universities.
"I spend most of my time talking about jobs, but higher education is a key part of why people
are coming to North Carolina," she said. "People like Dr. (Anthony) Atala understand that you
can get the workforce of the future in North Carolina."
Atala runs the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in Piedmont Triad Research
Park in Winston-Salem.
Perdue said she expects to see the House of Representatives' version of the budget by late
next week.
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