Fond du Lac government offers Mercury US$50m in loans
By IBI Magazine
County officials in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin yesterday offered Mercury Marine more than US$50m in government loans and other aid in a 12-year agreement. The officials announced the package after union members voted last week to accept a new contract from the company. County officials said they would pay for the incentives by raising the county's sales tax. The package would include US$3m in incentives from the city of Fond du Lac for loans and grants, and another US$50m in low-interest loans from the county. The money will be used for the development of new engines and the relocation of work from Mercury's facility in Stillwater, Oklahoma to Fond du Lac. The loan also stipulates Mercury can earn a US$1,000 credit on the loan for every new job brought to Fond du Lac, and a $500 credit for each existing position that is retained in the town. There is a $500 penalty for each job lost if the company leaves Fond du Lac before the end of the 12-year agreement. "We're really emphasizing performance by the company," Brenda Hicks-Sorensen, president of Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corp, told Dow Jones. The county started the negotiations process with Mercury last spring.
(9 September 2009)
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