NYPA OKs Niagara Hydro Allocations for 60 New Western NY Jobs at Pharmaceutical and Electronics Manufacturers

Contact
Michael Saltzman
914-390-8181
michael.saltzman@nypa.gov

January 25, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WHITE PLAINS—Low-cost hydropower from the New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) Niagara Power Project will help to create 60 jobs in Western New York, in connection with plans by a pharmaceutical company to expand two production facilities in Grand Island, and the construction of a new manufacturing plant in Cheektowaga for outlet strips and transformers.

The Power Authority Board of Trustees Tuesday approved two allocations of power, totaling 2,200 kilowatts (kw), for American Pharmaceutical Partners (APP), Inc., and Hammond Manufacturing Co.

“The new jobs will result from multimillion dollar capital investments by the two companies, which New York State is supporting with low-cost hydropower,” said Louis P. Ciminelli, NYPA chairman. “We full recognize the importance the Niagara Project plays as an engine for job growth in Western New York, and these three latest allocations reflect that.” Ciminelli, a Buffalo resident, noted that the allocations will come from a 445,000-kw block of power known as replacement power, reserved for businesses within a 30-mile radius of the project switchyard. Together with a second, 250,000-kw block of Niagara electricity called expansion power, the two amounts are awarded on a competitive basis and linked to more than 43,000 jobs on the Niagara Frontier.

The Western New York Advisory Group, consisting of the Power Authority, Niagara Mohawk, Empire State Development Corp. and the Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, recommended the allocations to American Pharmaceutical and Hammond Manufacturing. In 2003, the members of the group signed a Memorandum of Understanding for allocations of available Niagara power on a continuous basis to maximize the economic development benefits of the 2,400,000-kw hydroelectric project.

“We continue to forge ahead in spurring Western New York job growth under Governor George E. Pataki’s leadership, as demonstrated by these latest power allocations,” said Ciminelli. “Since the agreement for the continuous allocation of Niagara power, we’ve received commitments to create more than 2,200 jobs in the region.”

American Pharmaceutical, which will receive 2,000 kw, manufactures and markets injectable pharmaceuticals, including those for treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. The company is undertaking capital investments of nearly $34 million in its Grand Island operations.

At one of the facilities, on Lang Boulevard, new biologic processing equipment will lead to 25 additional jobs.

A second APP facility, on Staley Road, will be the site of a new 45,000-square-foot packaging building. The company also plans to expand its syringe-filling capabilities, with the various investments resulting in another 25 jobs at the site, where 481 people now work.
Hammond Manufacturing, which will receive 200 kw, is investing more than $1 million in a new 20,000-square-foot manufacturing plant, moving a small portion of its Waterloo, Ontario, operations to Cheektowaga. Some 14 jobs will be transferred, with the company planning to create another 10 jobs at the facility, whose manufacturing equipment will include molding machines, jib cranes, vacuum loaders, grinders and chillers.

The New York Power Authority is the largest state-owned public power organization in the country, providing some of New York’s lowest cost and cleanest electricity.