After a three-month shutdown due to COVID-19, the largest producer of Connecticut-made fuel cells says it has reopened its Torrington manufacturing plant.
While Gov. Ned Lamont deemed manufacturers to be essential businesses permitted to remain open, Danbury-based FuelCell Energy opted to suspend operations at the plant on March 18, citing employee health and safety concerns as the virus struck Connecticut.
The plant, which was expanded with the help of a $10 million low-interest loan from the state in 2015, began operating again on Monday, the company said.
CEO Jason Few said in a statement that the plant has enhanced safety measures.
“Extensive work has gone into preparing our facility, including implementation of spacing of shop floor activities to the extent possible, safety protocols, supply and access to personal protective equipment, and other critical social distancing and disinfecting protocols,” Few said.
The company said it was still able to conduct research and development activities during the break, as well as work on a 7.4-megawatt fuel cell plant in Groton and a smaller installation in California. FuelCell said its affected employees remained employed during the closure, receiving full pay and benefits.
The Department of Economic and Community Development agreed to defer three months worth of FuelCell’s loan payments -- for May, June and July -- pushing those balances out to the end of the 15-year loan, the company said.
FuelCell had originally hoped to meet job retention and creation targets that would have led the state to eventually forgive $5 million of its loan, but those targets and the potential forgiveness tied to them were reduced through several revisions of the deal since 2017. FuelCell now says it does not expect any of the loan to be forgiven by the state.