ReCharge NY sparks $37 million investment by Anchor Glass and helps century-old Southern Tier manufacturer retain 340 local jobs

Elmira Heights, N.Y.--State Senator Tom O'Mara (R,C-Big Flats) and Assemblyman Chris Friend (R-Big Flats) today joined local leaders and state economic develoment officials to announce that Anchor Glass Container Corp., a Southern Tier glass container maker, is receiving 6.6 megawatts in low-cost electricity through the ReCharge NY (RNY) program that will allow the company to retain 340 jobs and invest $37.2 million in its facility.

The area leaders were also joined by representatives of the New York Power Authority and Anchor Glass at the company's 100-year-old glass container production facility in Elmira Heights in Chemung County.

[read more in the September 19th Elmira Star-Gazette, and watch a WENY-TV report] 
 
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said: "Electricity costs are an important factor that businesses take into account when looking to expand and make new investments. The ReCharge NY program has given businesses and other enterprises across New York long-term certainty of stable electricity rates so they have the confidence they need to retain and create jobs. These new investments at Anchor Glass demonstrate the state's new approach to improve our business climate, create jobs, and grow the economy."

Senator O'Mara, a member of the Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee and a strong supporter of RechargeNY, said: "The ReCharge NY program is a breath of fresh air for our communities. It's a testament to Governor Cuomo's leadership in establishing a lower cost power program that meets needs of businesses for stable and predictable lower cost electricity rates. The utilization of this power at Anchor Glass is emblematic of hundreds of power allocations that the Power Authority has made under the program that are linked to capital investments and jobs in the Southern Tier and across the state."

Assemblyman Friend said, "Today is a proud day for all of us who've worked hard to make the Governor's ReCharge NY program a reality. I want to thank the Power Authority and its Board of Trustees for the administrative actions that have rewarded the industrial commitment to New York made by Anchor Glass and some 40 other Southern Tier companies. This is great news for boosting our local economy. The success of the ReCharge NY program is proof that lower cost energy needs to be the goal to help all who manufacture, create jobs and reside in the Empire State."

Mike Sopp, general manager, of the Anchor Glass facility in Elmira Heights, said: "The nature of our business, producing a diverse array of glass-container products, requires a great deal of electricity, running in the millions of dollars a year. The ReCharge NY program provides us with the certainty of long-term economical power supplies, which is essential to our financial bottom line and the profitability of our facility, with an annual payroll of approximately $26 million. The lowering of our production costs affects capital investment decisions, so we're most grateful to Governor Cuomo for responding to the needs of businesses like ours in developing his new statewide power program."

Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council Co-Chair Tom Tranter, President and CEO of Corning Enterprises, and Co-Chair David Skorton, president of Cornell University said, "Anchor Glass has been a staple of the Elmira community and an integral part of the area economy for as long as any of us can remember. Governor Cuomo’s ReCharge NY program is making a difference for our region’s diversified economy by providing lower cost power to key regional industries such as high-tech and military research and development, pharmaceutical manufacturing, agriculture, and food production. The success of these sectors is vital to continued regional economic growth and the allocation to Anchor Glass only furthers the program’s significant impact."

Since its creation in 2011, the RNY program has allocated low-cost power to numerous businesses, industries and other enterprises that have committed to retaining more than 33,000 jobs.across the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions.  Read more here, and here.

The governor and the Legislature launched the RNY program to help businesses lower their operating costs and spur economic development. The program offers up to seven-year contracts for lower-cost power, and reserves at least 350 MW for upstate businesses and institutions, 200 MW for business attraction and expansion, as well as up to 100 MW for not-for-profit organizations.
 

John R. Koelmel, NYPA chairman, said: "The ReCharge NY program is a springboard for driving New York State's economy and a clear signal of the Cuomo administration's dedication to helping businesses like Anchor Glass lower their operating costs and improve their competitiveness. Only recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce ranked New York among the top 10 states for growth and productivity, so clearly we're making great strides in positioning the Empire State as an effective partner to the private sector. The Power Authority is excited to be contributing to this effort with our allocations of ReCharge NY power."

Gil C. Quiniones, NYPA president and chief executive officer, said: "The Power Authority and our partners in the ReCharge NY Program, including Governor Cuomo's regional economic development councils, are maximizing the benefits of the lower cost power for supporting jobs and capital investments, as we're witnessing first-hand at Anchor Glass. The program has gotten off to a fast start with allocations to nearly 700 businesses and not-for-profits across the state, and we're looking forward to additional power allotments by the NYPA Trustees in the months ahead as we advance this vital initiative."

Kenneth Adams, President, CEO, and Commissioner of Empire State Development, said: "It is fitting that we're holding today's ReCharge NY event at Anchor Glass given the company's importance to the community. Anchor Glass is one of a number of Southern Tier companies having a major impact on the area economy—not only in the jobs at their facilities but from their commerce with other businesses in the region and the state. This underscores the secondary effects of the lower-cost power allocations under the ReCharge program, and how the benefits of the program go well beyond the direct recipients."

Anchor Glass' Elmira Heights facility, at 151 East McCanns Boulevard, produces 2.9 million glass containers a day for the food, juice, beer and beverage industries. Among the major customers are FX Matt Brewing in Utica and three companies in the Rochester area: Genesee Brewing Co., LiDestri Foods and Mott's. Other widely known companies served by the facility include Mike's Hard Lemonade and Anheuser Busch.

Half of the power under RNY is low-cost hydropower from NYPA's Niagara and St. Lawrence-Franklin D. Roosevelt hydroelectric projects in Lewiston and Massena, respectively. The remaining 455 MW is economical power secured by NYPA from wholesale market sources.

More than 1,000 applications were reviewed by NYPA staff, in consultation with the Governor's 10 Regional Economic Development Councils for the initial allocations. The applications were submitted through a Consolidated Funding Application process that the Governor established for apportioning state financial incentives and resources for spurring economic development.

In addition to jobs and capital investments, the various statutory criteria for considering RNY applications include the extent to which an allocation would be consistent with existing regional economic development strategies; an applicant's risk of closure or curtailing operations; the significance of the applicant's facility to the local economy; and its commitment to energy efficiency.