From staff reports

news@joplinglobe.com

PITTSBURG, Kan. — The U.S. Senate’s 2010 defense appropriations bill includes $3.2 million for EaglePicher Technologies in Pittsburg for a project that would improve battery performance for the Army.

U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said the allocation is among nearly $41 million in the bill for Kansas projects.

The Pittsburg project is described in Roberts’ news release as “advanced hybrid chemistry for portable power.”

“This project will develop advanced hybrid chemistry that will provide the Army with increased battery performance,” the news release reads.

No officials with EaglePicher could be reached Wednesday to provide more information about the project, including whether it would add to employment numbers at the Pittsburg plant. The company’s headquarters are in Joplin, Mo.

EaglePicher in 2006 moved its automated battery operation from Phoenix, Ariz., to Pittsburg.

“Kansas continues to play a critical role in the nation’s defense,” Roberts said in the news release. “These investments will advance the research and manufacturing of cutting edge technologies for our men and women in uniform.”

Still ahead

The Senate approved the defense appropriations bill late Tuesday. The bill now goes to a conference committee to resolve differences between the House and Senate bills. The conference report must be approved by both chambers and be signed by the president before becoming law.