MANISTEE -- A local manufacturing company has a verbal agreement with a startup company in Nevada to produce a wind generator in Manistee County.
Officials with MasTech Manufacturing Inc. said they've reached a deal with Reno-based Mariah Power to produce a vertical wind axis called a "Windspire" at MasTech's plant in Manistee.
MasTech operations manager John Holcomb confirmed the deal after the Manistee County Board of Commissioners this week formally accepted a $400,000 federal block grant to assist the project.
"Right now, it's verbally closed," Holcomb said of MasTech's production agreement with Mariah. "We hope to have it formally closed next week."
The project was jeopardized when consultants for the Michigan Economic Development Corp. rejected a $2 million low-interest loan for the two companies from the state's 21st Century Job Fund. Mariah officials said they also had a loan offer from the city of Youngstown, Ohio, to move the Windspire production there.
The state loan would have covered about half of the estimated $4 million startup costs for mass production of the generator.
Holcomb said the two companies were able to find private financing "in the seven-figure numbers" to close the deal.
"We went out and borrowed a lot of money," Holcomb said.
The Windspire is a 30-foot-tall vertical wind axis for household and commercial use that can generate approximately 2,000 kilowatt hours per year with an average wind speed of 12 mph. The units sell for around $5,000, plus installation costs.
Holcomb said if the deal goes through as expected, his plant will begin prototype production of the Windspire in December, and start full production in January. The project is expected to generate 40 new jobs at the MasTech plant, and more than 100 positions over the next three years.
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