For those who still insist that Toyota located a plant in Ontario
because Southerners are illiterate or Canada has government-provided
health care (recap here, here, and here), Kia has announced that it will open a $1.2 billion plant
that will directly employ 2,500 people in West Point, Georgia
(Population – 4,000). Another 2,500 jobs are expected at new plants for
suppliers.
Why West Point?
“Kia’s parent company, Hyundai Motor Co.,
already has a plant in Montgomery, Ala. Proximity to that site –
combined with a $258 million incentive package from the state – helped
woo Kia executives,” according to one article.
West
Point is 90 minutes up I-85 from Montgomery. The incentives line is a
throwaway to ensure the company can get something for nothing next time
it decides to build a plant.
UPDATE: Fuji Heavy will start building Toyota Camrys
at its Subaru plant in Lafayette, Indiana, conveniently close to
Toyota’s Georgetown, Kentucky, plant which also builds Camrys — no
incentives needed.
