Tennessee rated top state for economic investment

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

photo In this file photo, Seung Hwa Suh, vice chairman and CEO of Hankook Tire Co., speaks to reporters about the company's decision to build its first U.S. plant in Clarksville, Tenn., as Gov. Bill Haslam, left, looks on. The $800 million facility is expected to create 1,800 jobs.

TOP PROJECTS

The top projects for new jobs in Tennessee in fiscal 2013 were all in Middle Tennessee:• 1. Hankook Tire Co. Ltd., kn Montgomery County, 1,800 jobs• 2. Aramark in Davidson County, 1,500 jobs• 3. Nissan North America Inc., in Rutherford County, 1,400 jobs• 4. Calsonic Kansei North America Inc., in Bedford, Marshall and Rutherford counties, 1,200 jobs• 5. UBS in Davidson County, 1,000 jobs.

Tennessee is the "2013 State of the Year," according to Business Facilities magazine.

The monthly economic development publication recognized Tennessee for its job additions and business investments across a variety of industries, including its leading position in the growing automotive sector.

"Tennessee continues to impress us with its aggressive execution of a diversified growth strategy," Business Facilities Editor Jack Rogers said Tuesday. "The state has put in place a solid foundation for robust job creation for years to come."

The magazine picked Tennessee after evaluating the top five projects in each state for the number of jobs created and amount of capital invested from October 1, 2012 through October 31, 2013. Tennessee's top five economic development projects created a total of 6,900 jobs, $3.2 billion in capital investment and included seven expansions and three new recruitments.

"A lot of hard work goes into keeping Tennessee competitive, and I want to thank Business Facilities for recognizing the efforts of so many people across the state," Gov. Bill Haslam said in a statement. "We understand that jobs are created when someone is willing to risk capital, and we will continue working to make Tennessee a great place to invest."

Bill Hagerty, commissioner of Economic and Community Development in Tennessee, said the Volunteer State "has experienced unprecedented amounts of momentum" from both foreign and domestic companies.

Tennessee was recognized by the magazine for the past four years as the No. 1 state for automotive manufacturing strength. Tennessee joins Texas as the only multiple winner in the award since its start in 2007.