The incentive, approved Thursday by the board of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, would be payable to Bloomington, Minn.-based QBP in the form of tax credits taken by the company over 10 years. The full amount of the incentive is payable only if the company meets certain requirements over that time period, such as hiring at least 70 people in Utah.

A decision about whether to expand in Utah or another state would be made by next week, said Jo Wright, a company spokeswoman. QBP stands for Quality Bicycle Products.

"This is a very quality company, one we're very interested in bringing in," said GOED board member Jerry Oldroyd.

In its application for state money, the company said its average wage in Utah would be about $44,000, not including benefits. State officials say that's $10,000 higher than the average wage in Weber County, where the company may locate. In many cases, companies receiving incentive money must pay above the average wage of the county in which they are locating.

QBP, which bills itself as the largest parts and accessories distributor in the bicycle industry, says it serves more than 5,000 dealers nationwide. The company was founded in 1981.

Two other companies also are deciding whether to expand in Utah.

The GOED board also approved an incentive worth as much as $1.8 million for S Group and its two affiliates, Philadelphia, Pa.-based software company SA International and S3 Entertainment, a Park City provider of home entertainment and automation systems.

The companies are considering combining operations in Utah, which could mean 120 new positions.

The incentive would be payable over 10 years in the form of a tax credit if the companies add the full estimated number of new jobs.

State officials said the company's average wage for those positions is $77,000 including benefits. An average salary without benefits wasn't available, they said.

An incentive worth as much as $741,841 over 7 1/2 years was offered to a company called Top Ten Reviews, an e-commerce company.

The incentive is designed to prevent the company from moving to Idaho and ensuring it adds 160 new positions in Utah.

Also, the GOED board approved an incentive worth as much as $100,000 to encourage the producers of the movie "God Save London" to do some filming in Utah.

lesley@sltrib.com