The state will be giving Electric Boat $20 million for dredging to support the launch of submarines from a new dry dock and manufacturing superstructure being built in Groton, and $8 million for workforce training programs to support the submarine builder.
The money was approved by the state Bond Commission on Wednesday.
At Fort Trumbull in New London in May, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced that the state would be giving EB $83 million in exchange for the company adding jobs and spending hundreds of millions on capital improvements in Groton. The $28 million approved Wednesday represents a portion of the funding announced by Malloy.
State Sens. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, and Heather Somers, R-Groton, said in a joint statement that “it is important for the state to show strong support for essential workforce training programs such as the state’s Workforce Investment Boards which enhance workforce development statewide benefiting a wide range of job creators — from small mom and pop vendors and manufacturers to larger employers.”
As for the money for dredging, they said “there is a long history surrounding the need for funding to support dredging, not only at Electric Boat but throughout our state where marinas of varying sizes and boating access points and ports depend on occasional sediment removal to keep our waterways free of buildup that impedes sub movement and shipping traffic.”