The state’s economic development agency said Wednesday that it has secured more than $27.1 billion in committed capital investment so far in 2024 stemming from projects by 75 companies that are projected to create up to 7,540 jobs.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. announced the investment results at its board meeting Wednesday afternoon at Ivy Tech Community College Kokomo.
This year-to-date total investment figure nearly eclipses last year’s total, which was a record of $28.7 billion.
The announcement follows a record-breaking first quarter of more than $20 billion with 45 projects. The second quarter so far amounts to about $7 billion and the addition of 30 projects.
“We continue to see companies invest here even though we don’t have the highest incentive offer in every case,” Secretary of Commerce David Rosenberg said during the meeting. “They want to invest here because they know that long-term operating and workforce availability in this state will create more profit and more success for that company long term.”
Rosenberg told IBJ the pipeline of projects is not slowing, and the IEDC does not intend to take its foot off the gas when it comes to attracting new companies to the state or helping with expansions.
Of the 75 projects, the IEDC confirmed that 23 have been publicly announced. Board approval is typically a requirement before the company involved in an economic development is revealed, even if the deal has been approved by the company and the IEDC.
Economic deals that are announced don’t always come to fruition. Some projects are called off altogether or don’t result in the number of expected new jobs. The IEDC only pays out incentives when companies meet their job-creation and investment commitments.
Both Holcomb and Rosenberg reiterated that wage growth is a critical piece of their economic development strategy. The jobs created this year are expected to offer an average wage of $33.21 per hour, the IEDC said, with the total payroll tallying about $518 million.
IEDC Chief Strategy Officer Ann Lathrop said during the meeting there are potential projects officials are courting that could offer an average of $50 per hour.
“We continue to focus on quality over quantity while keeping our eye on wage,” she said. “We are definitely crushing it when it comes to capital investment, and the state is really going to see this pay off now and in the years to come.”
Rosenberg also gave a recap of what he called one of “the busiest” quarters ever. In the second quarter, the IEDC publicized a host of projects, allocated READI 2.0 funds, announced the Elanco-Purdue OneHealth Innovation District in Indianapolis, held the Global Economic Summit and sent a contingent to Belgium, Netherlands and France for a microelectronics trade trip.
The several announced projects include SK Hynix’s nearly $4 billion advanced packaging fabrication and R&D facility, Eli Lilly & Co.’s $5.3 billion LEAP District campus expansion, Google’s $2 billion data center in Fort Wayne, Microsoft’s $1 billion data center in LaPorte and Toyota’s $1.4 billion Princeton campus expansion.
Two large-scale unannounced projects were summarized at the meeting. Project Breadbasket is a construction and building materials manufacturer in Johnson County with plans to invest $213 million and create 215 jobs. Project Greenflag, which is a company in the pharmaceutical industry, plans to expand in Marion County with an investment of $110 million and the creation of 145 jobs.
Both projects will receive tax incentive packages from the IEDC worth about $3 million.
The governor also said he’s not pushing to close out any specific economic development projects under his leadership. Rather, he said he’s more concerned about moving forward with quality-of-place initiatives, like trail building, broadband expansion and education improvements.
In response to a question regarding the IEDC’s transparency following its $88 million LEAP Lebanon Innovation District investment approved Tuesday, Holcomb told reporters the agency does not have a blank check and that it is seeking approvals through the appropriate process.
“We’re capitalizing on that as a state to make sure that we’re going to be able to attract the best talent in the world, and companies that are going to make major investments,” Holcomb said.
Rosenberg said the LEAP district is similar to other research parks in that it requires a multi-decade investment. Total investments, he said, will be dictated by how the district evolves over time and is molded by its inhabiting companies.
“The final product will be determined through those discussions with the legislature and the companies themselves,” he said.
By Cate Charron, Indianapolis Business Journal
