April 27, 2010

Maryland loses Northrop Grumman; heading to Virginia

Defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. will move its headquarters cross country to the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., to be closer to its key customers in the U.S. government, officials said Monday. Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley congratulated northern Virginia for winning an intense sweepstakes between the two states for the corporate control center. Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell planned to announce the relocation on Tuesday in Arlington. The company announced in January that it wanted to move from Los Angeles to the Washington area by 2011. A spokesman did not immediately return calls and an e-mail Monday seeking comment on the company's choice.

Northrop Grumman CEO Wesley G. Bush told O'Malley on Monday that the company decided to move to one of two sites in Virginia, O'Malley spokesman Rick Abbruzzese said. The site will be either in western Fairfax County, near Washington Dulles International Airport, or in the Crystal City area of Arlington, which is almost within walking distance of the Pentagon, a company official said on condition of anonymity because the person didn't want to upstage McDonnell's announcement.

The move will send about 300 of Northrop Grumman's senior employees to the Washington metropolitan region. The company, which provides aerospace, electronics, information systems, shipbuilding and technical services, has about 120,000 employees worldwide. SOURCE: ABC

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