Monday, February 14, 2011

Busmaker Proterra eyes Charlotte region for plant - Charlotte Business Journal:

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Proterra founder and Chairman Dale Hill has so far disclosedr visiting sites in twoarea counties, including the former Alcoa Inc. aluminum smelting plant in Stanly He also likesIredell County. Hill says his compangy needs “a couple hundred thousand square feet” on 10 to 15 The value of suchan economic-development project hasn’t been disclosed. Hill is interested in Mooresville for its skillecdmotorsports workers. But the area lacks existing buildingse that fit the Hill says. The Alcoa plant in Badin also has “It would take a lot of cleaningf up toconvert it,” Hill says.
“Itf could be a candidate facility but not if we have to pay for all the The company, based in Colo., also is considering locations from Michigan to Soutj Carolina for an East Coast plant. Regional economic-development officials are interesteds in anymanufacturing project, particularly one that could bringy hundreds of jobs. “We’re doing what we can to make sure they take a hard lookat Mooresville,” says Russ Rogerson, executive director of the “They could become a significanrt manufacturer.” Economic-development officials in Stanly County couldn’t be Alcoa stopped refining aluminum in Badin in 2007, endint 95 years in the county.
who founded Proterra in 2004, alreadu has had some successes in producing green Hisearlier company, TransTeq, made hybrid busez that are used by the Denvere Regional Transit District’s 16th Street Mall route. Proterra has developex fuel-cell technology under severaklgovernment programs. The company operates from a 13,000-square-foot facility in the Coorse Technology Center, where its research, engineering, development and prototypingt functionsare based. Hill, a formerd Charlotte resident, says incentives will be key inthe company’zs decision on a site. Proterra will make its choicd withinsix months, he says.
An unidentifiedd firm is leading Proterra’s site search and discussions aboutg inducements, Hill says. “We will go where the incentives are thered toattract us.” The company was initially recruited to the area for a potentiall hydrogen-powered light-rail or trolley system. Hill is schedulede to speak June 12 at the Fiftu International Hydrail Conferencein Charlotte. He says his companuy has the ability to build a transportatiom system that runs onhydrogen “if we have a custometr to do that.” So far, other alternative fuels have powered Hill’z buses. “Our predominant market is battery-powered and fuel-cell-powered buses.
” Its fuel-cell bus sells for $1.7 millioj and its battery-electric bus sellsz for $1.2 million, Hill says. Both have zero One of Proterra’s rivals, both for customerss and federal funding, is now based in Charlotte: hybrid-electrixc busmaker DesignLine International Holdings. A DesignLines bus currently costsabout $605,000, according to the which plans to buy as many as 200 hybridd from either DesignLine or Gillig Corp. of San Franciscio by fiscal 2012. QUICK •Advocates of hydrogen-powerexd transportation will meet at the Fifthh International Hydrail Conference onJune 11-121 at UNC Charlotte.
•Walter Kulyk, directod of the Office of Mobilit Innovation at the Federal Transit will be thekeynote speaker. •Other presenteres include Dale Hill, chairman of Colorado-based Proterra, who has been scouting the regiobn for amanufacturing site. •Details: hydrail.orgt

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