PROVIDENCE –
R.I. Commerce Corp.'s board of directors on Dec. 16 will consider a pair of proposals to award tax credits and jobs incentives for an anticipated expansion of Saab Inc.'s Autonomous Undersea division to Bristol to produce autonomous undersea vehicles.
If approved, the proposals would provide tax incentives under the Rhode Island Qualified Jobs Incentive Act and tax credits under the Rebuild Rhode Island Tax Credit Act to Saab Inc. and Unity Park LLC, which would build the facility, respectively. Both proposals will first be heard before the R.I. Commerce Investment Committee before the full board meeting.
The Unity Park site would focus on manufacturing and testing facilities after a roughly $8.9 million 45,692 square-foot redevelopment, according to the meeting agenda. A press release announcing Saab's expansion to Bristol had previously been posted on its website before being removed.
R.I. Commerce Corp. spokesperson Matthew Touchette on Friday declined to specify the amounts of the awards being considered and said the details will be posted publicly on Dec. 16.
Established in 2022, Saab’s AUD division provides aerospace technology for U.S. and offshore government agencies and private interests in the defense and security sectors, currently operating out of a 10,000-square-feet manufacturing facility on Kenney Drive in Cranston. The company also has an office presence in Quincy, Mass.
It secured a 10-year contract with the U.S. Navy with a potential value of up to $173.2 million to provide up to 1,000 MK39 Expendable Mobile Anti-Submarine Warfare Training Targets annually unmanned underwater vehicles used to train sonar operators by mimicking the acoustics and signals of submarines.
Jeff Smith, Saab AUD vice president and general manager, at the time of the contract award said, “New England, and Rhode Island in particular, is the heart of autonomous undersea vehicle production in the U.S. and that its proximity to the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport “allows for a collaborative, in-person relationship."
“It makes perfect sense to grow our business [in Rhode Island]," he said.
Requests for comment to Saab Inc. were not immediately returned.
Founded in 1937 in Stockholm as an aircraft manufacturer for the Swedish Air Force, Saab was best known as an automobile manufacturer before financial struggles led the company to sell its automobile division to General Motors in 2000 before closing in 2011.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
