Bennington officials not surprised by Energizer plant closure

BENNINGTON, Vt. (NEWS10) — Last week, Energizer announced that it will close its factory in Bennington.

The company plans to move to an existing facility in Wisconsin.

Local officials were not completely surprised by the move since the number of employees declined over the years.

“Way back in the 40’s and 50’s there were 600 or 700 workers. There had been a couple hundred as recent as three to four years ago and our most recent census was 75 -76, ” said William Colvin, Director of the Bennington County Industrial Corporation.

In a statement, Governor Phil Scott called the announcement disappointing. 

“With the facility moving to another state within the U.S., this decision is an unfortunate example of why those of us in Montpelier need to work together to make Vermont a more affordable place to do business and make sure our policies help businesses thrive rather than creating unique burdens and barriers to growth that make us less competitive with other states,” said Governor Scott.