LANSING – Development of advanced batteries and the vehicles that will use them is an important sign of the future viability of the U.S. automotive industry, Gov. Jennifer Granholm said Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters shortly after the Michigan Economic Growth Authority approved tax breaks for four advanced battery manufacturing centers in the state, Granholm said the announcements were an important step in the nation moving toward energy independence.

While the announcements themselves do not affect the negotiations and decisions General Motors and Chrysler have to make on dealing with long-term debt and financial viability, “to be viable you to have to produce the vehicles that will lead to the eventual goal of energy independence,” she said.

The announcements show that Michigan is leading the way in the new automotive manufacturing that estimates now expect will grow as large as $18 billion to $20 billion by 2020, Granholm said.

“This is really our Michigan effort to lead in the production of the next vehicle, the electric vehicle,” Granholm said. There is no question that electric cars, along with advanced hybrid vehicles, will be built, Granholm said, the “question is where. Michigan has planted its flag” to lead the development and production of those vehicles.

The announcements were part of a larger series of MEGA awards that Granholm said could result in as many as 7,700 direct and indirect jobs created.

The four advanced battery projects alone are expected to help generate as many as 6,700 jobs.

Two of the projects are directly tied to vehicle developments with General Motors and Chrysler, both of which are racing to meet federal deadlines to meet new requirements for restructuring or face bankruptcy. GM is partnering with LG Chem-Compact power, with LG expecting to hire as many as 300 people. Along with a $100 million state battery tax credit the company was awarded a state tax credit of $25 million.

A123 Systems Incorporated will partner with Chrysler for batteries for that company’s vehicles. A123 is expected to create as many as 885 jobs at its Livonia facility. The company was awarded a state tax credit of $25.2 million along with a $100 state battery tax credit.

The state also made awards for John Controls-Saft Advanced Power, which is expected to generate as many 498 jobs, with development and production at its current Holland facility. The company got a 15-year state tax credit of $48.5 million and battery cell tax credit of $100 million.

Also KD Advanced Battery Group was awarded a state tax credit of $44.6 million and a battery tax credit of $100 million. The firm is expected to generate as many as 885 new jobs.

Greg Main, president of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, said the announcements marked the “dawn of the next Michigan” and that the state was showing an insightful development strategy in trying to get ahead of one of the next big industrial developments.

And Sen. Jason Allen (R-Traverse City) who helped shepherd the legislation through that allowed for up to $550 million in tax credits said the announcements “put Michigan at the forefront of where it needs to be.”

OTHER AWARDS: Among the other companies that received awards from MEGA were Continental Dairy Products that will build a new powdered milk production facility in Coopersville; PolyChem LLC which will relocate a concrete tile manufacturing facility from Mississippi to Norton Shores and Unity Studies Incorporated which will convert an existing facility in Allen Park into a new television, film and media production center.

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