Officials: Yardney Will Benefit State, Local Economies

The state will gain income tax and the town will put 140,000 square feet of manufacturing space back on the tax rolls — benefiting both economies, according to officials — when Yardney Technical Products moves to East Greenwich next year.

The high-performance battery manufacturer expects to move to town next year after renovating the Patriot Commons property at 2000 South County Trail, site of the former On Semiconductor. State and local officials welcomed the company to East Greenwich, touting the positive impact a high-tech manufacturing company can have on the state and town.

"Working to create an economic climate that will encourage businesses to bring good, high-paying jobs to Rhode Island has been one of my top priorities since taking office in January,” Gov. Lincoln Chafee said in a release. “With this in mind, I am pleased that the Yardney management team views Rhode Island as a place where their business can grow and prosper."

Chafee touted the 165  jobs Yardney will bring to Rhode Island. While most current employees plan to keep their jobs and commute, according to CEO Richard Scibelli, limiting the new jobs created, the state will still benefit from the income tax those workers generate, Chafee said. Plus, there's always the possibility of growth for Yardney, despite the lingering effects of the recession, given that about 90 percent of its contracts are with the federal government and military.

That, combined with the benefit to East Greenwich of putting a large, vacant facility back on the tax rolls, justifies the state's investment in the project, Chafee indicated. Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation’s Industrial-Recreational Building Authority guaranteed the $5.2 million loan through Webster Bank for the building's purchase and renovation. That was a big factor in Yardney's decision to move, Scibelli said.

"The state of Rhode Island was very helpful," he said. "The EDC did an outstanding job putting the package together. Without that, we wouldn't have been able to do it."

The EDC Board of Directors also approved Yardney for “Project Status,” making it elligible for a sales tax exemption on the purchase of construction materials and equipment, furniture, fixtures, machinery, computers and facility equipment. The income tax gains will reimburse the state for the exemption, capped at $557,405, within three years, according to EDC Executive Director Keith Stokes.

The town will benefit not only from the increase in property tax, but also from the money 165 employees will spend at local establishments, according to Town Council President Michael Isaacs.

"Yardney is a solid company that plays an integral part in the country's defense and the aerospace industry," Issacs said. "This is a welcome development in what has been a difficult recession."

Yardney, currently based in Pawcatuck, CT., produces high-tech, high-performance  batteries largely for military and aerospace applications. The company manufactures the batteries in B-2 bombers, missle systems, torpedoes, submarines and even the rovers exploring the surface of Mars. Some private business includes the manufacture of high-tech batteries in hearing aids and pacemakers. Scibelli expects the company will continue to grow in its new facility. It is working on the batteries for a new Mars rover and continues its work with the military. "Weaponry is much more sophisticated and so are the batteries," he said.

Yardney plans to complete construction on the facility and move into East Greenwich next May.