Foxconn to submit site plans for first phase of $10B plant by Dec. 1

Dive Brief:

Taiwan-based electronics company Foxconn Technology Group is scheduled to deliver on Dec. 1 the first substantive site plan details for the initial phase of its $10 billion Mt. Pleasant, WI, LCD flat-panel display factory, according to BizTimes. Submission of the development plans is a requirement under the company's agreement with Mount Pleasant.
The company has previously stated its factory complex will include four facilities to handle the manufacturing and assembly process, but Foxconn intends on future expansion and providing space for its suppliers as well. The agreement with Mount Pleasant, which also must be approved by Racine County, WI, also requires that Foxconn begin construction by Jan. 1, 2019; provide a 10-year, $100 million development enticement; and establish a tax increment financing district that will furnish $764 million in financing for land purchases, water infrastructure, sewer and road infrastructure.
Foxconn's obligations under the agreement include a guarantee that the district's value will increase $1.4 billion by 2023 — backed by a promise to make up the difference in tax payments — and a pledge to kick in $60 million for land.

Dive Insight:

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker inked a $3 billion incentive deal with the company earlier this month after winning state legislative approval. The agreement is the biggest such package offered up by a state to a foreign company. The contract requires Foxconn to invest at least $10 billion in the plant's construction and operation and to create 13,000 jobs throughout 15 years.

If the company does not meet these investment and employment requirements, it must reimburse the state through the repayment of tax credits, 25% of which Foxconn CEO Terry Gou guaranteed personally.

Several states have jumped at the opportunity to put together tax breaks and other programs in order to motivate foreign manufacturers to set up shop within their borders. For example, Swedish automaker Volvo decided in September it would double its investment in a South Carolina plant from $500 million to $1 billion, according to CNBC. A few years ago, the state guaranteed the company $200 million in incentives and borrowed $123 million to make that deal happen. In return, the company will employ almost 4,000 workers, who will manufacture up to 100,000 vehicles a year.