< Previous SITE SELECTION MAY 2025 17 evaluating more than incentives. Manufacturers must assess labor quality and availability, land costs, power and water reliability, logistics infrastructure and local policy consistency. The Path Forward: Challenges and Considerations While the growth potential is significant, India’s mobility sector is not without its challenges. Regulatory complexity, infrastructure bottlenecks and varying state- level policies require careful navigation. Key site selection considerations include: • Workforce: India offers a large pool of skilled labor, but training requirements can vary by region and specialization. • Infrastructure: Industrial parks and special economic zones (SEZs) offer plug-and-play setups, but road and port infrastructure may differ by state. • Policy landscape: National policies are generally business- friendly, but consistency in state- level implementation is critical. • Land acquisition and utilities: Availability and pricing differ widely across regions. Power quality and cost remain important variables. India’s mobility sector is evolving rapidly, and the window for first-mover advantage is now. As global manufacturers seek new destinations to expand and diversify operations, India offers more than just a cost advantage. It offers scale, talent, policy alignment and a growing appetite for innovation. Successful investment, however, hinges on thoughtful site selection and a deep understanding of local dynamics. Disha Singh is a Tractus consultant based in the Indian office. Sarah Gorecki is the Tractus marketing coordinator based in the Thailand office. Tractus has 30 years of experience supporting global companies with market entry, site selection and implementation in India and across Asia. Visit tractus-asia.com.RESOURCE DIRECTORY The Economic Development Resources Guide D irectories, listings, checklists and data sets go back a long way in Site Selection — -plus years, in fact. It’s why our parent company is named Conway Data. But it’s , not . e idea of fi nding an organization by paging through a printed document is quaint and anachronistic, no matter how well it’s designed and laid out. And like many in our corporate audience, we like to manage our paper use. So, beginning with this issue’s annual Economic Development Resource Guide, Site Selection will make its directories available exclusively online, complete with full listings like those you see on this page, artfully laid out with logos and hyperlinked URLs our readers can use to instantly reach the organizations in question. Just scan the QR code you see on this page to be instantly transported to the resource guide of tomorrow. When you get there — just like in the old days when we used punch cards — they’ll know Site Selection sent you. — Ed. KANSAS JUNCTION CITY Junction City/Geary Cnty. Econ. Dev. Comsn. 222 W. 6th St. Junction City, KS 66441 Mickey Fornaro-Dean, Dir. 785-762-1976 https://www.jcgced.com TEXAS LINDALE Lindale Econ. Dev. Corp. 105 Ballard Drive Lindale, TX 75771 903-882-5332 Susan Gill, Pres. https://www.lindaletexas.com MANSFIELD Mansfi eld Econ. Dev. Corp. 1200 E. Broad St. Mansfi eld, TX 76063 Jason Moore, Exec. Dir. 817-728-3650 https://mansfi eld-texas.com PFLUGERVILLE Pfl ugerville Community Dev. Corp. 3801 Helios Way, Ste. 130 Pfl ugerville, TX 78691 Jerry Jones, Exec. Dir. 512-990-3725 https://www.pfdevelopment.com 2025 SITE SELECTION MAY 2025 19 Data Centers Bet Big On UK’s ‘Stability Dividend’ C apital investment in post-Brexit United Kingdom isn’t a bad bet after all, if the country’s International Investment Summit organized by the government’s Department of Business and Trade (DBT) in late 2024 is any indication. (The UK’s No. 1 finish in this issue’s Global Best to Invest rankings is another.) About 38,000 jobs and £63 billion (US$83 billion) in investment were announced at the conference in London’s historic Guildhall building, more than double the investment amount set at the previous year’s gathering. While the Labor government was quick to celebrate the success of the Investment Summit, several projects included in DBT’s event wrap-up reportedly got under way during the previous, Conservative government. Regardless, key industry sectors and locations around the UK are in for significant economic boosts. “Global investors should be in no doubt that under this new government Britain is truly the best place to do business,” said Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds in a statement. “The record-breaking investment total secured at the Summit marks a major vote of confidence in the UK and our stability dividend across industry and innovation.” Data centers are conspicuous among the investment projects. Combined, they represent 35% of the capital investment announced. They include: • Blackstone confirmed a £10 billion ($13.2 billion) investment in Blyth, Northumberland, to create one of the largest AI data centers in Europe, creating 4,000 jobs, including 1,200 roles dedicated to the construction of the site. • Amazon Web Services announced an £8 billion ($10.6 billion) investment last month which is estimated to support around 14,000 jobs per year at local businesses, including those across the company’s data center supply chain such as construction, facility, maintenance, engineering and telecommunications. • CyrusOne, a leading global data center developer headquartered in the United States, announced plans to expand its investment into the UK to £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion) over the coming years. Subject to planning permission, the two data centers should be operational by Q4 2028, projected to create over 1,000 jobs both directly and within its immediate design and construction value chain. • CloudHQ is developing its new state-of- the-art £1.9 billion ($2.5 billion) data center campus in Didcot. The hyperscale data center is currently in development and will help meet the UK’s growing demand for AI and machine learning. It will create 1,500 jobs during construction, and 100 permanent jobs once fully operational. Other industry sectors with formidable investment projects getting under way are renewable energy, particularly wind and solar farms, and infrastructure, including airports and container ports. by MARK AREND mark.arend@siteselection.com UNITED KINGDOM The current Guildhall building in London was completed nearly 600 years ago, but the site dates to Roman times. It’s still used today to host official functions, among other uses. Photo: Getty ImagesWORLD REPORTS 22 MAY 2025 SITE SELECTION by ALEXIS ELMORE alexis.elmore@siteselection.com A Second Dose of R&D Investment A straZeneca plans to introduce a second global strategic R&D center in Beijing, over 12 hours north of its fi rst R&D center in Shanghai, China. This announcement marks the company’s sixth global R&D center investment to date. “This $2.5 billion investment refl ects our belief in the world-class life sciences ecosystem in Beijing, the extensive opportunities that exist for collaboration and access to talent, and our continued commitment to China,” said AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot. “Our sixth strategic R&D center will partner with the cutting-edge biology and AI science in Beijing and be a critical part of our global eff orts to bring innovative medicines to patients worldwide.” The Beijing R&D center will be located in proximity to leading biotechs, research hospitals and the National Medical Products Administration at the Beijing International Pharmaceutical Innovation Park. This project is expected to aid in new research collaborations with expertise from the Beijing Cancer Hospital, Harbour BioMed and Syneron Bio across various study areas. Energy is Up in Finland T he $180 million Hitachi Energy Park is offi cially underway in Vikby, located in Finland’s west coast municipality of Mustasaari. Switzerland-based technology company Hitachi Energy announced that the fi rst stone had been laid at the site, as construction of a new 430,500-sq.-ft.-plus production and technology center takes place over the next two years. The project will boost Hitachi Energy’s production capacity for power technology solutions, including a new transformer factory that will help double the company’s production and testing capacity for transformers. “This project, signifi cant for both the Vaasa region and Finland as a whole, showcases strong energy expertise and innovation and demonstrates the unique technology pioneering spirit of the entire region,” said Hitachi Energy Finland Managing Director Matti Vaattovaara. To date, this facility is the company’s largest transformer manufacturing plant. Hitachi Energy’s project will create 200 new jobs in the region. Photo courtesy of Hitachi Energy AstraZeneca also announced a new JV with BioKangtai to develop, manufacture and commercialize vaccines for respiratory and other infectious diseases. Photo courtesy of AstraZeneca JV Marks Major Milestone L ondon-based investment group SEGRO has announced the company will be pursuing a joint venture with Pure Data Centres (Pure DC) to construct a new 56-megawatt data center in London’s Park Royal region. The over $1.2 billion initiative, named SEGRO Pure Premier Park Data Centre Limited, will represent SEGRO’s fi rst fully fi tted data center development. The 322,915-sq.-ft. data center will be constructed on 10 acres of land owned by SEGRO, while Pure DC has secured 70 megavolt-amperes of power to support the site. The project announcement stated that the JV expects to sign a 15-year or longer long-term net lease with a global hyperscaler, although it has not been disclosed which hyperscaler that is. Construction is set to begin in 2026, creating hundreds of new jobs during buildout, with completion slated for 2029. SEGRO’s selection of Park Royal, located in a key London Availability Zone, is projected to help attract hyperscalers looking to grow in the London market. Rendering courtesy of SEGRO/Scott Brownrigg SITE SELECTION MAY 2025 23 Green Light Granted in Lviv I reland-based building materials company Kingspan Group has now received long-awaited approval to begin work on a new Building Technology Manufacturing Campus in Ukraine. The $297 million project, which is set to be located in the western city of Lviv, will house production of advanced insulation, energy-effi cient building material products and district heating solutions, according to the company. “We’re thrilled to get the greenlight to begin work on the site, which marks a hugely important milestone for us. We were among the fi rst Western businesses to announce plans to invest in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion, and we have been fully committed ever since,” said Kingspan Group Ukraine Project Director Mike Stenson. Now that Kingspan has been granted its fi rst building permit the initial phase of construction will soon begin, building out over the next fi ve years. Once complete, the campus will create 700 new jobs. Kingspan Group is offi cially moving forward on a new facility investment in Ukraine fi rst announced in 2022. Rendering courtesy of Kingspan Group Made in India F ollowing an earlier announcement of a $4.2 billion automotive manufacturing investment from Maruti Suzuki in Gujarat, India, the company has returned for more. In March 2025, India’s top vehicle manufacturer revealed that a $864 million investment would be headed to the northern state of Haryana to establish a new manufacturing facility. The project will be the company’s third location in the state and once complete by 2029, all three locations will hold an annual production capacity of 750,000 vehicles. Maruti Suzuki currently exports about 40% of all vehicles in India. These investments are expected to aid the company in meeting rising global demand. Maruti Suzuki’s new project investment in India looks to bring total production capacity in the country to 4 million vehicles by 2031. Photo courtesy of Maruti Suzuki 1. Finland 2. Denmark 3. Iceland 4. Sweden 5. Netherlands 6. Costa Rica 7. Norway 8. Israel 9. Luxembourg 10. Mexico 11. Australia 12. New Zealand Gallup 2025 World Happiness Report — Top 12 Happiest Countries24 MAY 2025 SITE SELECTION How One Multinational Overcame Challenges of Real Estate Development In Latin America Companies must comply with local zoning laws, environmental regulations and labor laws, which can vary significantly from one region to another. PepsiCo’s experiences in establishing some of its distribution centers throughout the region offer proof of these challenges. The company always must work closely with local authorities to ensure compliance with all regulatory requirements. That requires extensive paperwork, negotiations and, sometimes, overcoming bureaucratic hurdles. This kind of process can be time-consuming and costly, potentially delaying project timelines and increasing expenses, placing the expected — and approved — financial results at risk of change. Infrastructure Limitations Infrastructure in many Latin American countries is often inadequate to support large-scale real estate developments. Issues like poor road conditions, unreliable electricity supply and limited access to water can be a significant challenge. A good example from PepsiCo is the distribution center in Villa Nueva, Guatemala, located immediately southwest of Guatemala City. The chosen location for this distribution center was strategic due to its connectivity to major highways, facilitating efficient logistics and distribution. However, ensuring that the infrastructure could support the operation required substantial investment. The company invested in modernizing the facility and implementing advanced logistics systems to overcome these limitations. The distribution center features automated voice command systems for product selection and 29 dispatch doors to streamline operations. These enhancements were crucial for maintaining efficiency and meeting market demands, but they also required significant financial resources and planning. Another good example is the service mixing center in Puebla, Mexico, that solved logistics challenges with the local market across 29 distribution centers and 15 PECs (product exchange centers) in the central and southeast regions of Mexico. Mexico is PepsiCo’s largest market after the United States, with 15 plants and more than 250 distribution points throughout the territory. It is the main portion of the Latin America portfolio that earned $11.7 billion in annual net revenue in 2023, supports more than 80,000 direct jobs and operates over 40 production plants in 34 countries. by LEANDRO ROVAI editor@siteselection.com LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN R eal estate development in Latin America has a unique set of challenges for multinational companies. These challenges range from navigating complex regulatory environments to infrastructure limitations and ensuring sustainability. One of the primary obstacles multinational companies face in Latin America is the complex regulatory environment. Each country has its own set of laws and regulations governing real estate development, which can be difficult to navigate. In some countries, for instance, obtaining the necessary permits and approvals for construction can be a lengthy and bureaucratic process. Leandro Rovai is head of Global Knowledge Management within PepsiCo Global Real Estate, which he first joined in 2017 to manage the Latin America portfolio. Originally from Brazil, he is a guest lecturer at SiiLA Academy, where he shares his knowledge with the next generation of real estate professionals in Latin America. The location chosen for PepsiCo’s distribution center in Villa Nueva, Guatemala, southwest of Guatemala City, was strategic due to its connectivity to major highways. Photos courtesy of PepsiCoNext >