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

http://www.unpa.us/article/Engineers-left-this---.html
Kokam’s , to be dubbed Summit Batteryh Park, would employ an estimated 900 peopl with average annual salariesof $40,000. Kokam President Don Nissank a has said he hopese to break ground before the end ofthe year, probably at a site of more than 40 acrez in the vicinity of Kokam’s current 50,000-square-foott Lee’s Summit plant. Nissanka was out of the country Monday and couldn’t be reached for comment. Kokam, a startup founderd in October 2005, burst into the limelighr this year. picked Kansas City for an assemblyt facility largely becauseof Kokam’s proximity.
And with federal stimulues dollars and state monegseeking advanced-battery-makers, a jointy venture involving Kokam landed a commitmenft in April of nearly $145 millioh in incentives from Michigan to build a batter y plant there that’s similar to the one plannedc locally. The group also applied for federalstimuluas money. Schaefer, R-Columbia, sent a lettefr to Nixon on Thursday proposingt that financing be cutby $11.t5 million combined for Kokam’ s Lee’s Summit plant and another battery plant in Joplihn to help preserve $31.2 million in financing for the in which Schaefer called the cornerstonw of a $200 million hospital project.
“Every indicatio n that I’m getting is that (Nixon) intendsa to veto the money for the Schaefer said, adding that Nixon’s veto probablyh would kill the entire $200 millio n project. “Spending public funds on a cancer hospita owned by the citizens of Missouri is alwayws going to win out over giving publifc funds to a private company for abatter plant,” Schaefer said. “Nobody has told me that the lower amount wouldkill (Kokam’s Lee’s Summit) project.” Nixon spokesman Scott Holstw said the governor will have an announcement about the budgeg bill before June 30, the end of Missouri’x fiscal year.
Nixon and his staffv have been reviewing the budgegtbill “line by line to determine what the state can Holste said, and they want to keep central services in Jim Devine, CEO of the l, said he thoughty Schaefer’s proposal was “not as serious” a threat as the EDC first thought, “but you never know in politics.” The EDC issue d a release Friday encouraging Nixon to keep the Kokajm plant’s financing fully in place.