Electric vehicle maker Cenntro Inc., which said in a July 9 news release that it is “winding down” its Jacksonville operations, told the city in 2022 it was withdrawing its request for an economic development agreement.
In 2021, City Council approved $450,000 in tax incentives as part of the economic agreement with Cenntro to open a manufacturing facility.
“After reviewing the agreement with our executive management team, we do not believe Cenntro is prepared to move forward at this time. We respectfully request Cenntro’s Economic Development Agreement dated, June 23, 2021, be withdrawn,” it said in the letter sent to the Office of Economic Development.
The Daily Record obtained the letter through a public records request.
"We received the attached letter less than 45 days after we received the executed Economic Development Agreement (EDA) from them, which resulted in the city not having to make any type of incentive payment," OED Executive Director Ed Randolph said in a July 11 email that included the Cenntro letter.
Cenntro announced in December 2021 that it would open its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Jacksonville to assemble its commercial electric vehicles.
Its incentives deal comprised a Recaptured Enhanced Value Grant, which is a refund on property taxes, for five years totaling $450,000 and ending no later than 2027.
The grant called for Cenntro to create 34 jobs by December 2023, at an average salary of $52,000.
Cenntro’s $25 million investment in real estate improvements and machinery was to be completed by June 30, 2023.
The letter seeking the withdrawal, dated Aug. 3, 2022, didn’t say that Cenntro was leaving Jacksonville.
“We believe Cenntro will add value to the City of Jacksonville by creating a number of employment opportunities within the community. We will continue to work with local business’ as we grow our footprint here in Jacksonville and anticipate a wonderful working relationship between Cenntro and the City,” it said.
The letter is signed by Timothy Morgan, operations and development manager at Cenntro.
The company continued to invest in Jacksonville after asking out of the agreement.
The city issued a permit Jan. 4, 2023, for a $1.15 million build-out for a 30,000-square-foot space for Cenntro Electric Group Ltd. within Building 100 at 2240 Lane Ave. N.
That build-out indicated about 70,000 square feet for future expansion.
The city followed up with a permit issued May 17, 2023, for $1.33 million in tenant improvements for the full 100,106 square feet as Phase 2.
In March 2023, Cenntro said it had begun production of vehicles at the Jacksonville plant at 2240 Lane Ave. on the Westside.
The company also established a showroom in 2023 for its vehicles at 11840 Beach Blvd. on the Southside.
By that time, Cenntro had another U.S. assembly plant near its New Jersey headquarters and it announced plans to open a California facility.
The July 9 news release said the Ontario, California, plant is focused on the U.S. West Coast market while its New Jersey facility is serving the East Coast.
“With our expanded production capacity in California, Cenntro is positioned for more efficient delivery our EVs to the west coast market. With this strategic shift, we intend to continue driving sales by improving our production capability and providing fleet customers with the ability to electrify their fleet, reduce their carbon footprint, and significantly lower their cost of operations,” CEO Peter Wang said in the release.
The Freehold, New Jersey-based company gave no other details about the Jacksonville plant and did not respond to voice and email messages asking about the facility.
According to its annual report, Cenntro has overseas plants in Changxing and Yangzhong, China; Herne, Germany; and Monterrey, Mexico.
The annual report describes it as “our flagship EV Center for sales and support functions.”
Cenntro had one other U.S. EV Center at its Freehold headquarters and nine in other countries as of Dec. 31.
Cenntro’s most recent financial report showed revenue of $3.4 million and a net loss of $9.2 million in the first quarter.
Most of its sales were in overseas markets with about $1.7 million in revenue generated in Europe and $1.1 million in Asia.
U.S. revenue was $625,905.
Mark Basch contributed to this report