Page 24 - ARUBA TODAY

Tuesday 27 June 2017 BUSINESS
A24

BMW announces $600M expansion as it celebrates 25 years

By SEANNA ADCOX the state. BMW, which has separately invest $200 mil- reached a milestone with its McMaster. Others in atten-
Associated Press already invested $8 billion lion over five years on work- 2 millionth exported BMW. dance Monday included
BMW said Monday it will in South Carolina, also un- force training, The overwhelming majority U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham
invest an additional $600 veiled its 2018 BMW X3, a Krueger said. of its exports leave through and U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson of
million to expand its South compact sports vehicle ex- The company touts the the Charleston port. South Carolina.
Carolina plant, creating pected to be available in South Carolina plant as its “BMW is the company that, BMW announced plans for
1,000 new jobs over the November. largest worldwide, produc- in many ways, put South a South Carolina plant in
next four years. It will be built at the plant in ing more than 411,000 X Carolina on the map when June 1992.
CEO Harald Krueger’s an- Greer alongside the BMW models last year. its leadership decided to Production at the plant off
nouncement coincided X4, X5 and X6. About 70 percent of BMWs build its first North American Interstate 85 between At-
with the German auto- The expansion will boost made there are exported manufacturing facility” in lanta and Charlotte, North
maker’s celebration of 25 its workforce to more than to more than 140 countries. the state a quarter cen- Carolina, began two years
years of manufacturing in 10,000 people. BMW will Last year, the plant tury ago, said Gov. Henry later.q
‘Like bombs’: Bankrupt company’s air bags still out there

DEE-ANN DURBIN contacted a Subaru deal-
MARI YAMAGUCHI er, only to be told it didn’t
Associated Press have the parts. He was put
Takata’s lethally defec- on a waiting list and told
tive air bags proved to be he would have his car re-
the company’s undoing paired in June. It hasn’t
Monday. But it could take happened yet. In the U.S.,
years to get the dangerous more than 16 million infla-
devices off the road in the tors have been repaired
U.S. and around the world. so far, or 38 percent of the
Crushed by lawsuits, fines total. In Japan, 70 percent
and recall costs, the Japa- have been replaced, ac-
nese auto parts supplier cording to Takata. That’s
filed for bankruptcy in To- partly because Japan
kyo and Delaware and will won’t renew vehicle regis-
sell most of its assets for $1.6 trations unless recalls have
billion to a rival company. been completed. Because
A small part of Takata will of the type of chemical
continue to manufacture propellant used by Takata,
replacements for the faulty Japanese air bag maker Takata Corp. CEO Shigehisa Takada bows at the beginning of a press the defective air bags can
air bag inflators. The prob- conference in Tokyo, Monday, June 26, 2017. Takata Corp. has filed for bankruptcy protection in inflate with too much force
lem, though, is that 100 Tokyo and the U.S., overwhelmed by lawsuits and recall costs related to its production of defective and spew deadly shrapnel
million of the Takata infla- air bag inflators. at drivers and passengers.
tors worldwide have been (Akiko Matsushita/Kyodo News via AP) Takata sold the inflators to
recalled, 69 million in the for at least 16 grisly deaths Morrison, the lawyer for a overseeing the recall. 19 automakers, including
U.S. alone in the biggest worldwide, 11 of them in young Las Vegas woman “I don’t think I have any Toyota, Subaru, BMW, Hon-
automotive recall in Ameri- the United States. Many grievously injured by an ex- options,” lamented Marv da, Ford and Nissan.
can history. It will take the owners have been put on ploding air bag in March. Muller, the owner of a 2009 Takata’s bankruptcy filing
industry years to produce waiting lists by their dealers In fact, the last batch of Subaru Impreza. “It’s really clears the way for most of
that many replacements. until the parts arrive. U.S. repairs is not scheduled bad.”Muller, a recruiter in its assets to be taken over
In the meantime, millions of “The big problem is the to begin until September New York, received a let- by Key Safety Systems, a
car owners are forced to air bags are still out there. 2020, according to the Na- ter in January saying his car Chinese-owned company
nervously wait for someone They’re like bombs waiting tional Highway Traffic Safe- needed to have its passen- based in suburban Detroit.
to fix a problem blamed to explode,” Billie-Marie ty Administration, which is ger air bag repaired. He q

Rocket engine plant announced for Alabama by Bezos’ company

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A will locate a production the nation, (and) explore procurement. a $30 million tax credit for
private spaceflight com- factory for the BE-4 rocket the universe,” Meyerson In making the announce- investment and up to $10
pany owned by Amazon- engine in Huntsville upon a said at a news conference ment, Blue Origin said it million in reimbursements
founder Jeff Bezos plans contract being signed. Ac- in Huntsville. Blue Origin is would invest $200 million in for eligible capital costs.
to build a powerful new cording to the company’s considered a leading con- the Huntsville facility and Ivey said the project would
rocket engine in Alabama website, the powerful BE-4 tender for the contract af- expects to employ up to build on the historic role
for space flight, the com- engine is designed to end ter it and ULA entered into 350 people producing as that Huntsville and Ala-
pany and state officials an- dependence on Russian- a partnership last year with many as 30 engines a year. bama have played in the
nounced Monday. built engines for launching the U.S. Air Force to devel- “Blue Origin, welcome to development of the Ameri-
Blue Origin President Rob- payloads into space. op a new rocket propulsion Alabama,” Gov. Kay Ivey can space program.
ert Meyerson said his com- “Alabama is a proven system to power Vulcan, said in an announcement The BE-4 is fueled by liquid
pany is seeking a produc- leader in aerospace manu- ULA’s new rocket designed Monday. “We thank you for oxygen and liquefied natu-
tion contract with United facturing with the highest- to carry heavy payloads investing in our people.” ral gas to produce 550,000
Launch Alliance, a private skilled workforce, business into space. The Alabama Develop- pounds (250,000 kilograms)
company that provides climate and leadership A spokeswoman for ULA ment office said in a release of thrust and is intended to
satellite launches for the that we need to produce declined by email to dis- that the state offered an in- be used in both govern-
U.S. government and oth- low-cost rocket engines cuss the status of the proj- centive package of more ment and commercial mis-
ers. He said the company that we need to protect ect, saying it is an ongoing than $50 million, including sions. q