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| From © The Bay City Times |
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Bay City GM Powertrain to make major announcement, investing millions of dollars for Ecotec engine |
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February 17, 2010By Andrew Dodson
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Good news is driving into the Bay City GM Powertrain plant Thursday as officials plan to announce millions of dollars in investments at the plant and, possibly, more jobs.
“This is an investment announcement dealing with our next generation Ecotec engines,” said Heidi Magyar, communications manager for Bay City Powertrain. “It involves three plants — Bay City, Tonawanda, NY, and Defiance, Ohio.”
The announcement is at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Bay City plant, 1001 Woodside.
Magyar did not elaborate on the specifics of the announcement, but said it is a significant investment.
The Ecotec engine is a turbocharged fuel-efficient engine. GM’s newest fuel-efficient vehicles, the Chevrolet Cruze and the Chevrolet Volt, both use 1.4-liter Ecotec engines.
Bay City’s Powertrain plant is building components for both vehicles. In August, GM announced a $37 million investment to build engine components for the Volt and Cruze.
That investment includes renovations of about 34,000 square feet of existing floor space and installation of new equipment. The project is expected to result in 32 new union jobs at the plant.
The 2.2-liter Ecotec engine is used in more than a dozen other GM vehicles.
Bay City Mayor Charles Brunner will be speaking at Thursday's event, although he said GM officials have been tight-lipped about what the investment will entail.
He is not sure how many jobs it will bring, or how much equipment, or what exactly the plant will be used for.
He said he’s “ecstatic” however about any investment that will help with the growth of Bay City and the region.
“Ever since I can remember I’ve been hearing the plant is going to close,” Brunner said. “About a year ago that was close to happening and we were close to losing the entire industry.”
Brunner has traveled to Washington, D.C., several times in the past year as part of the Mayors and Municipalities Automotive Coalition to meet with federal leaders on the future of the industry and the Bay City plant.
“I’m just so happy,” he said. “It seems like a lot of what I deal with as mayor is doom and gloom, it’s nice when we can get some good news.
“Obviously, high level General Motor’s officials have faith in the plant and the work done there and hopefully they have faith in our community.”
Mike Lasco, president of the UAW Local 362, said he couldn’t discuss specifics of the announcement, but sounded positive of the news on the way.
“It is good news coming,” he said.
U.S. Congressman Dale Kildee, D-Flint, is also scheduled to speak. |
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