A German wood paneling maker plans to open a $250 million manufacturing plant in South Carolina’s rural Clarendon County.

Homanit announced Wednesday it will build its first United States manufacturing facility on 140 acres near the small community of Alcolu — population 425.

The company pledged to employ 300 people in the area located off Interstate 95, about 40 miles north of its intersection with I-26.

“This investment marks a significant milestone for our company, and we’re proud to become part of such a vibrant and forward-looking region,” Homanit Managing Director Fritz Homann said in a statement. “The area’s skilled workforce, strategic location and strong infrastructure make Clarendon County the ideal foundation for our next phase of growth in North America.”

The announcement marks the largest single investment in Clarendon County economic development history, according to Central SC Alliance President Jason Giulietti.

“Homanit’s announcement to establish such a large operation in Clarendon County represents a tremendous vote of confidence in our state’s forestry and manufacturing industries,” Secretary of Commerce Harry Lightsey said in a statement. “This significant $250 million investment and the opportunities it brings to a rural area will have a lasting impact.”

When it begins operations in 2028, Homanit will make wood paneling for furniture, vehicles and doors. It’s product line is of particular importance to a state timber industry that has been struggling amid closures of major paper mills.

“Homanit’s sizable investment — the largest forest products manufacturing announcement in the state in more than three years — is welcome news, particularly for our pine pulpwood markets,” State Forester Scott Phillips said in a statement.

The company currently operates production facilities in Germany, Lithuania and Poland.

In exchange for Homanit’s investment, Clarendon County officials approved a deal offering the company a reduced property tax rate of 4% for 40 years.

By state law, manufacturers without such an arrangement pay a 6% rate. (Industrial property owners previously paid a 10.5% rate, but state laws passed in 2017 and 2022 effectively lowered it to 6%.)

Clarendon County Council also approved $2.1 million in grants and $2.2 million in reimbursements for the company. And the agreement includes additional credits allowing the company to further buy down its property tax bill, according to County Administrator Lynden Anthony, but the details of those credits was not immediately available.

The county, through its economic development organization, has been developing the site for more than a decade, Anthony said, using state-funded grants to build out water and sewer and expand roads in the area. The state also approved the company for income tax credits worth $20,250 per each new job.

“The economic impact of a project of this magnitude will be felt throughout our community for generations to come,” Clarendon County Council Chairman John Johnson III said in a statement.

Source: scdailygazette.com