State job chief ‘concerned’ about Whirlpool, Mitsubishi

Maria Haley, director of the Arkansas Economic Development Department, said Wednesday she has concerns about Whirlpool and Mitsubishi operations in Fort Smith, and that the state is doing what it can to support the two operations.

Mitsubishi Power Systems Americas (MPSA) announced on Oct. 16, 2009, plans to build a $100 million, 200,000-square foot wind turbine manufacturing plant on 90 acres at Fort Chaffee. The plant could employ up to 400 once fully operational. Company officials said construction will start in the fourth quarter of 2010 and be complete by the fourth quarter of 2011. Mitsubishi officials expect full production and 400 jobs in place by the first quarter of 2012.

But that date is uncertain because of an ongoing legal battle between Mitsubishi and General Electric.

“Since Mitsubishi broke ground on its $100 million plant in Fort Smith, the company remains on time and on budget to create its first wind turbine nacelle-manufacturing plant outside of Japan. In the interim, however, the ongoing GE-Mitsubishi litigation over wind turbine patents continues to be reviewed by the courts,” Mitsubishi spokeswoman Sonia Williams said recently.

Williams said the company is waiting on a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Also, a lawsuit GE filed against Mitsubishi in the U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas is “active and proceeding,” Williams explained.

Officials with Whirlpool Corp. have acknowledged a review of the Fort Smith refrigeration plant is underway, a change from previous denials that any significant changes were under consideration for the plant.

Whirlpool provided this comment when asked about the report of trash compactor and BIR lines being moved: "The declining demand for side-by-side refrigeration, and reduced forecasted production volumes for 2012, has prompted the company to initiate a study of options for the Fort Smith location. No decisions have been made, however the company will be reviewing asset utilization across its North American refrigeration operations. Current demand for all major appliances is at recessionary levels. We continue to monitor our business, and make adjustments as needed to deliver best cost and best quality to our customers."

Haley, during an interview with Roby Brock of Talk Business, said the state is doing what it can to let Whirlpool and Mitsubishi know it is ready to help however it can.

"I am concerned about those two projects," Haley confessed Wednesday after speaking to a group of more than 200 Arkansas economic developers meeting in Little Rock. "We’ve talked to Whirlpool and we’ve talked to Mitsubishi and they are still on schedule. There are some difficulties ahead, but we are tracking it and we are talking to those two companies."

Haley hinted that there may be little the state can do beyond its current offers to help due to market conditions and the free enterprise system.

"Obviously, these are business decisions of both Whirlpool and Mitsubishi and we have to respect those business decisions, but at the same time, we need to go and give them our message,” she said.