At a Worcester Polytechnic Institute Venture Forum gathering last week, Boston-Power international chairman and founder Christina Lampe-Onnerud explained the reasoning behind the Westborough-based battery maker’s decision last year to shift approximately 30 of its Central Massachusetts jobs to new facilities in China, a move she admits came with hesitation.
What about labor costs?
Lampe-Onnerud said the company is not building facilities in China to take advantage of cheaper labor. In fact, she described labor costs there as “very expensive.”
“You go high-tech, you need skilled labor,” for the mainly automated operations, she said.
Did China offer incentives to Boston-Power?
Yes. The company received a combined $155 million from government incentives and venture capital.
Contrast that with a major 2009 letdown that Boston-Power suffered in the United States. Its application to the federal government for a $100-million grant to build a manufacturing plant in Auburn, which would have created an estimated 3,000 jobs, was rejected.
Is Boston-Power entering the Asian market for the first time?
No. The company has had a facility in Shenzhen since 2005. And it has opened several more since. Boston-Power recently broke ground on a 500,000-square-foot facility in China that will allow it to capture 2 percent of the battery market, Lampe-Onnerud said.
What remains in Westborough for Boston-Power?
The company still has approximately 50 employees in Westborough.
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