Sign maker closing Columbia plant, cutting 60 jobs

COLUMBIA (AP) — A Tennessee sign manufacturer is closing its Columbia plant eliminating 60 jobs.

The State newspaper of Columbia reported that ImagePoint plans to consolidate its production at an expanding plant in Cincinnati.

ImagePoint president Bruce Smythe says it doesn't take as long to make signs now and it is best for the company to consolidate operations at the Ohio plant.

Company spokeswoman Cynthia Moxley says employees are being given 60 days notice and will be laid off in phases as production winds down.

ImagePoint will provide severance packages and will sponsor a job fair at the plant.

NC boat plant to cut 50 jobs

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Fifty people will lose their jobs at Brunswick Corp.'s boat plant in Navassa and the company plans to idle its production lines in July.

The company blames a slump in boat sales that has worsened considerably in the past year for the job cuts and furloughs.

Brunswick Corp. spokesman Dan Kubera told the Star-News of Wilmington that the workers left idle by the line shutdown in July can take their paid vacation during the down time if they like. The company will pay their insurance premiums.

Kubera says the job cuts will leave the plant with 250 employees.

Santee Cooper to buy more green power

CHARLESTON (AP) — The state-owned utility Santee Cooper says it will buy an additional 1 percent of power from businesses that use renewable sources.

Mollie Gore with the Moncks Corner utility told The Post and Courier of Charleston that Santee Cooper already is looking at potential suppliers. Gore says most of the suppliers are located in South Carolina.

The utility plans to buy 50 megawatts of biomass-derived power. It already generates about 15 megawatts from plants that burn landfill fumes.

The purchase would provide enough power to serve 25,000 homes.

Santee Cooper generates about 5,500 megawatts of power, about 80 percent of it by burning coal. It would not say how much the new electricity would cost. But energy from renewable sources typically sells for a premium.