POCATELLO, Idaho — A Hawaii company remains committed to finishing a $390 million polysilicon plant in eastern Idaho despite difficulties in raising money for the project, an official says.

Darryl Nakamoto, chief financial office for Hoku Scientific Inc., said it has invested too much time and money in the plant planned for Pocatello to walk away from the project.
“Our intention is to complete the plant,” Nakamoto told the State Journal. “But, again, it’s a tough economic time.”
Earlier this month, Hoku officials said financial problems could delay construction of the plant, where the company plans to make polysilicon for solar panels.
The company lost $4.3 million in fiscal year 2008, but narrowed that to $3 million in 2009 and has increased earnings from $3.2 million to $5 million. Still, Hoku is about $106 million short of covering the cost of the plant and the sputtering economy has made it difficult to raise more financing.
The company will need more money to complete construction on time, Nakamoto said. The plant is projected to produce 4,000 metric tons a year of polysilicon and add about 200 jobs to the region by mid-2010.
“We are still on schedule, but we could fall off schedule,” Nakamoto said.
In a statement Monday, Pocatello Mayor Roger Chase said he remains optimistic about the financial incentive package the city and Hoku officials announced earlier this month. It calls for the city to be reimbursed $2 million for the cost of acquiring land and for other plant costs.
The city also would be reimbursed up to $11 million for building an access road to the plant from U.S. Highway 30.
Under the agreement, Hoku would be reimbursed up to $15 million of its tax payments for initial building costs and could recover $17 million of its property tax if it meets the employment commitments.
The agreement is part of a tax increment financing district and will last through 2031.
The city also included nearby land in the district for businesses that might be interested in locating near the Hoku plant.