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11.11.2016
Teijin announces $600M carbon fiber plant in Greenwood County TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF
tanderson@communityjournals.com Another Japanese carbon fiber
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plant has landed in the Upstate. Airbus supplier Teijin Ltd. announced Nov. 4 it will invest $600 million to build the plant on a 440acre site off Highway 246 and create 220 new jobs. The company did not provide a specific address for the site. According to property records, Teijin paid $6.3 million in June for property at 1122 Highway 246 formerly owned by Carolina Pride Foods Inc. Sources familiar with the project confirmed the site, which sits across from Fujifilm Manufacturing USA Inc.’s facility off Puckett Ferry Road, is where Teijin plans to build the plant. The site has rail access, but the company did not disclose how it plans to move products to and from the facility. Heather Simmons Jones, CEO for the Greenwood Partnership Alliance, said Teijin’s announcement, in terms of investment, is three times higher than the county’s previous largest economic development project. “We have been working on this for a number of years,” she said. “I think all of us are kind of numb this morning. We can’t believe it’s real. This is quite a shining star for us. We’re very excited.” The company said the facility will produce carbon fiber for the automotive and aerospace industries, but did not say when the plant is expected to open. “After an extensive site selection process that included six states, Teijin selected Greenwood because of its pro-business atmosphere and proactive support from Gov. Haley and her team, as well as local government officials,” said Wayne Trotter, director of government relations for Teijin, in a statement.
“We were also attracted to the diversity of Greenwood’s citizens, the community’s rich history of welcoming foreign investment and the excellent training opportunities available at Piedmont Technical College. We plan to invest in resources to develop new and innovative products to meet the increasing demands of the global carbon fiber market.” Teijin, founded in 1918, said it specializes in offering advanced solutions for sustainable transportation, information and electronics, safety and protection, environment
and energy and health care. The company said it will announce details on its hiring plans after it completes its engineering studies. Teijin said it has also reached an agreement to acquire Michigan-based Continental Structural Plastics Holdings Corp., a supplier of automotive composites. That deal is expected to close in December. The company’s competitor Toray is building a $1 billion plant in Spartanburg County that is expected to create at least 500 jobs. Officials in Spartanburg have said they believe the facility will have the same transformational effect that BMW has had since opening its first plant outside Germany in 1994. “Things are coming together,” said Greenwood County Council Chairman Steven Brown. “We are trilled to have this opportunity … I personally believe that [Teijin] will be a success here. It’s a great day for us.” For more information, visit teijin.com.