The New York Power Authority approved hydropower and funding awards expected to support nearly $89 million in private capital investment in western and northern New York, according to a Tuesday announcement from Gov. Kathy Hochul. The projects include transformer manufacturing in Cheektowaga and a ceramic manufacturing conversion by Corning Inc. in the North Country.
The largest project is Niagara Power Transformer's more than $71 million Cheektowaga expansion. NYPA approved $4.5 million from its Western New York Power Proceeds program for the initiative, which the state says would add 96,000 square feet to the company's manufacturing campus and increase production capacity by 50%. The company projects 73 new permanent jobs and retention of 146 existing jobs.
Western New York manufacturers receive power and funding
The power authority also allocated 210 kilowatts of low-cost Niagara hydropower to Sigma Advanced Materials, an advanced ceramics manufacturer in Cheektowaga. The allocation supports a $238,000 equipment and processing expansion. Unlike a direct grant, a hydropower allocation provides access to a lower-cost electricity supply under the program's terms.
In Lockport, cabinetry manufacturer Candlelight Curated received a $1 million funding award toward a $4.25 million rehabilitation of a 200,000-square-foot industrial facility. The work includes production equipment and workflow upgrades. State officials say the project would restore 70 jobs; that is a projection, not a reported count of jobs already returned.
The Jacobs Institute, a nonprofit medical technology center on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, received $658,503 for facilities modernization and expansion. The institute plans to increase clinical training and research capacity and improve its ability to commercialize medical technologies.
Together, the three Western New York Power Proceeds awards total nearly $6.2 million. The governor's release says the western projects will drive nearly $79 million in investment and create nearly 150 jobs. Most of that anticipated spending and job growth is associated with the Cheektowaga transformer expansion.
Empire State Development previously approved performance-based tax credits of up to $3.4 million for Niagara Power Transformer and up to $2 million for Candlelight Curated, as well as a $1 million capital grant for the Jacobs Institute. Those earlier awards are separate from the new NYPA decisions and are contingent on their respective program conditions.
Corning Inc. warehouse conversion planned in North Country
NYPA also approved $1.8 million in Northern New York Power Proceeds funding for Corning Inc. to convert an existing warehouse into a ceramic manufacturing facility. The state said that project would retain 344 jobs and create five more. The announcement identifies the project as being in the North Country but does not specify the warehouse's municipality or county; Corning Inc.'s name does not establish that it is in the Finger Lakes city of Corning.
The state said Empire State Development had previously supported Corning Inc.'s growth with up to $7 million in performance-based Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits. The release did not give a construction schedule, total project cost or date when the new jobs would be filled.
NYPA's Power Proceeds funds draw on net earnings from sales of unused hydropower generated at the Niagara and St. Lawrence-FDR power projects. The Western New York and Northern New York funds were created under separate state laws in 2012 and 2014, respectively.
The allocations and awards have been approved by NYPA's board, but the projected investments and employment effects remain future commitments. The projects named in the announcement are in western and northern New York; the release identifies no Finger Lakes project receiving one of these awards.
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