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The Tipton County Council is set to vote Tuesday evening on $13 million in incentives that could help attract a renewable
energy firm to an abandoned factory on U.S. 31 near Kokomo.
The funds would be used to create a bond the county would give to the trust of contractors that own the empty Getrag plant,
according to the Kokomo Tribune.
The plant, where transmissions were to be built, has stood empty since 2008. Getrag Manufacturing LLC filed for bankruptcy
and halted work on the plant after the company's partnership with Chrysler LLC collapsed. The facility has never been
used.
A federal bankruptcy court in Detroit turned the facility over to a trustee group consisting of contractors still owed money
on the project. The court set a minimum price of $45 million for the property.
The bond would help the trust lower the price of the plant without losing any money, the newspaper said. The county plans
to use Tax Increment Financing to pay for the bond.
Work on the $530 million project came to a halt in October 2008. The factory is 80-percent complete, and it has taxpayer-financed
road and utility service.
Tipton County reportedly is one of two locations the unnamed renewable-energy firm is considering to manufacture its solar
panels. The company could create up to 800 jobs.
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