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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Frank Burns |
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Gamesa receives more than $7 million to save, create local jobs
HARRISBURG, Feb. 18 – State Rep. Frank Burns, D-Cambria/Somerset, today said that Cambria County wind turbine manufacturer Gamesa Wind USA will receive $7.8 million in grants through the federal Recovery Act.
The funding, awarded
through the Recovery Act-funded Green Energy Works! Wind grant program, will
allow Gamesa to reinstate 79 workers who were laid off in November. Gamesa will
use the funding to install 19 two-megawatt wind turbines at the Chestnut Flats
Wind Farm in Cambria and Blair counties. The project is expected to create 50 jobs
on top of the 79 it saved.
"This funding announcement is proof that the federal stimulus is effective and putting people back to work," Burns said. "This is not just 79 individuals getting their jobs back; it's 79 families who are getting their security and quality of life back – families that will spend their paychecks at local businesses and funnel more money into our local economy."
Since the Recovery Act was passed, Pennsylvania companies and communities have received more than $800 million for green energy projects. Those funds are in addition to the nearly $1 billion in state funds spent to help grow this sector in the last seven years. As a result, according to the Pew Center, Pennsylvania ranks third for the growth of green jobs just behind the powerhouse energy states of Texas and California.
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