SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
CERTIFIED SITES
CERTIFIED SITES
From Site Selection magazine, March 2023
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Time Machines
By shortening timelines, certified sites extend opportunities.
Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) LLC broke ground in October 2022 for its $5.54 billion manufacturing plant at the 2,967 Bryan County megasite — the very first site in Georgia’s new megasite program.
Rendering courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group
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leven years after it launched its Select Site certification program, CSX in January announced a newly designated location to bring that select list to 26: the 1,426-acre Central South Carolina Megasite in Lugoff, South Carolina, located near I-20 less than 30 minutes from the state capital of Columbia. It’s one of three Select Sites in the state.
“It’s rare to find a property this large that is adjacent to both a railroad mainline and an interstate highway at an existing interchange, with all utilities on site,” said Jonathan Gemmen, senior director, Austin Consulting, the firm that works with CSX to screen candidate sites and assist communities with the application and certification process.
A CSX release explains that Kershaw County identified the megasite property over 15 years ago as an opportunity to attract a large industrial user. Subsequently, the county “performed all the necessary due diligence studies, such as environmental, archaeological, endangered species, wetland delineation and multiple geotechnical studies,” says CSX. “Large portions of the megasite have been cleared and a 500,000-gallon water tank is under construction on the north end of the site.”
That sort of dedication, preparation and action goes a long way to reducing construction timelines once a buyer pulls the trigger. But it does something else too.
“Taking part in the CSX Select Site program demonstrates Kershaw’s commitment to economic development,” said Julian Burns, chairman of the Kershaw County Council.
Norfolk Southern: $3.2B in Projects Along Network in 2022
CSX’s rivals know the value of certified and prepared industrial sites too. Norfolk Southern recently announced it had partnered with 120 companies to facilitate 159 industrial development projects in 2022. The projects expanded operations or created new facilities along the company’s rail network. Collectively, they represent $3.2 billion in investment and the creation of more than 3,940 new jobs.
“Our customers continue to leverage our business development and real estate expertise in addition to our world-class logistics network,” said Norfolk Southern Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Ed Elkins. “With more than 825 development-ready industrial sites, approximately 300 rail-to-truck transload facilities, and 260 short-line partnerships, we have the capacity and connections to support our customers and earn new business.”
Using the railroad’s customizable industrial site and transload location search engine NSites, it’s easy to filter by certified status to find that 54 of those 825 sites are officially certified. They include a 1,600-acre megasite in Calera, Alabama, located next to I-65 south of Birmingham; the 3,305-acre Southern Virginia Megasite in Danville; the 1,814-acre Crawford Diamond Industrial Park in Callahan, Florida (Nassau County); the 1,825-acre Waverly Mega Site in Sussex County, Virginia; the 1,419-acre Franklin Farm site in Richland Parish, Louisiana; and the 1,017-acre Orangeburg County Power Site in Orangeburg, South Carolina.
Among the 33 companies representing $30 billion in forthcoming investment in Norfolk Southern’s project pipeline for 2023 and beyond is Hyundai Motor Group, which is investing $5.54 billion in an EV and battery manufacturing “metaplant” at a 2,967-acre certified megasite in Bryan County, Georgia, just northwest of Savannah along I-16. It was the very first site in Georgia’s megasite program, purchased for just such an investment by the State of Georgia and the Savannah Harbor-Interstate 16 Corridor Joint Development Authority (Bryan County, Bulloch County, Chatham County, and Effingham County) less than one year before Hyundai’s May 2022 announcement.
As it happens, rail service provided to the site by Georgia Central Shortline will connect to CSX in Savannah and Norfolk Southern near Macon.
Nissan EV Project
Mississippi and Nissan: Gearing up for the future of automotive manufacturing — electric vehicles.
Two-thousand Nissan employees preparing to produce EVs for Nissan and Infiniti brands.
Nissan officials recently announced the partial conversion of the company’s Canton, Mississippi, plant to begin the production of EVs.
Since 2003, when Nissan opened its automotive assembly plant in Canton, Mississippi, the state has been integral to the world’s automotive industry. Nissan’s decision two decades ago to invest in its Canton facility put Mississippi on the radars of other industry leaders, and today, the Magnolia State is the only state that is home to both Nissan and Toyota plants. Mississippi also has since welcomed top-tier suppliers like Continental, Yokohama and numerous other automotive giants that have invested significantly in the state and put thousands of Mississippians to work in high-tech automotive manufacturing jobs.
As times change, however, so do the needs of industry. So Nissan has once again turned to Mississippi as the company’s focus shifts to the future of automotive manufacturing, which is quickly shaping up to be a future prominently driven by electric vehicles. Nissan, which has invested $4 billion in its Canton operations over the last 20 years, announced a $500 million investment to partially convert the sprawling facility to begin production of two all-new, all-electric vehicles for its Nissan and Infiniti brands.
This huge economic development win also involves the upskilling of 2,000 of Nissan Canton’s existing 5,000 team members so they are prepared to successfully produce the EVs while continuing Nissan’s remarkable legacy of success in Mississippi. It also sends a message to world that Mississippi is ready to produce the vehicles of tomorrow for some of the industry’s heaviest hitters.
Of Nissan’s exciting announcement, which was celebrated at the Canton facility by Governor Tate Reeves, the state’s economic development leaders and Ashwani Gupta, Nissan Motor Corporation, Ltd. COO, Gupta said, “Today’s announcement is the first of several new investments in the U.S. to deliver on our commitment to the future of mobility and electric vehicle innovation. This is an important investment in the Canton plant and team to build best-in-class EVs through facility and technology updates and employee training opportunities.”
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves (center) and Nissan executives gathered at the Canton plant to celebrate the major economic development win.
The list of reasons why Nissan and other automotive leaders choose Mississippi time and again is impressive, with the state’s hospitable business climate, which is as friendly as those who call Mississippi home, topping that list. Governor Tate Reeves, the Mississippi Legislature and the Mississippi Development Authority, the state’s lead economic development agency, understand the power of a welcoming business environment and strive to build upon its many attributes through new initiatives that benefit businesses across a range of sectors — for example, the Site Development Grant Program. This program was introduced to provide funding to local economic development entities in order to develop shovel-ready sites in industrial parks throughout the state so companies like EV manufacturers can turn dirt as soon as they choose their perfect Mississippi location.
The state also takes a proactive stance when it comes to workforce development by partnering with its community colleges and universities to provide top-notch, customized training so generations of workers are ready to take on the jobs of tomorrow. Companies doing business in Mississippi have access to talent from eight universities, 15 community colleges and a research consortium composed of four universities, all creating an ecosystem that positions them for success now and well into the future. Additionally, to bolster Mississippi’s workforce development efforts, the state recently created Accelerate Mississippi, which also serves to build a world-class workforce through partnerships with community colleges and universities.
Mississippi also knows speed-to-market is a must when companies are looking to locate or expand operations. The state’s integrated transportation network, in addition to its prime location that is “halfway to everywhere,” makes it an obvious choice for EV and EV components manufacturing. Six interstates; 14 U.S. highways; three navigable waterways; 15 ports, including two deepwater ports on the Gulf of Mexico; five Class-1 railroads; and seven commercial airports give EV manufacturers efficient and timely access to domestic and international markets.
“Mississippi’s many business advantages, our passion for bringing good jobs to the people of our state and our commitment to ensuring companies have all the tools needed for years of success combine to create an ideal environment for industry leaders like Nissan to stay ahead of the competition,” said MDA Deputy Executive Director Laura Hipp. “As the industry shifts to meet the demand for EVs, we stand ready to assist EV technology companies in finding their ideal locations in our state.”
Mississippi welcomes the opportunity to work with you on a confidential and cost-free basis to evaluate options for establishing a new location in the Magnolia State. Contact the Locate Mississippi team at 1.800.360.3323 or locateinms@mississippi.org today to start mapping out your future in Mississippi. You’ll be glad you did.
Adam Bruns
Editor in Chief of Site Selection magazine
Adam Bruns is editor in chief and head of publications for Site Selection, and before that has served as managing editor beginning in February 2002. In the course of reporting hundreds of stories for Site Selection, Adam has visited companies and communities around the globe. A St. Louis native who grew up in the Kansas City suburbs, Adam is a 1986 alumnus of Knox College, and resided in Chicago; Midcoast Maine; Savannah, Georgia; and Lexington, Kentucky, before settling in the Greater Atlanta community of Peachtree Corners, where he lives with his wife and daughter.
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