Foxconn Technology Group says the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. decision finding the company does not qualify for tax incentives under a 2017 contract “is a disappointment and a surprise.”
WEDC sent Foxconn a letter Monday informing the company that it was not eligible for tax credits because it is no longer building a Gen. 10.5 LCD fabrication plant in Mount Pleasant.
When Foxconn first announced plans for a $10 billion investment that would create 13,000 jobs in the state, the company said it would build a plant designed for production of large LCD screens. Those plans would have drawn significant additional investment, but Foxconn switched to planning a smaller plant to have more flexibility in its business.
That WEDC would declare the new plans don’t match the contract was foreshadowed, the agency has taken that position for more than a year. The two sides have worked towards a new deal but have not reached an agreement.
“Foxconn came to the table with WEDC officials in good faith to discuss new terms of agreement, which have consequential impacts to Racine County and the Village of Mount Pleasant, third party partners in this development project,” the company said in a statement. “WEDC’s determination of ineligibility during ongoing discussion is a disappointment and a surprise that threatens good faith negotiations.”
Missy Hughes, secretary and chief executive officer of WEDC, said Foxconn’s vision for its operations in the state is still important for the future of the state's economy, but the agency also cannot avoid the reality of the contract.
The company noted it has not received any tax credits yet even though it has reached more than 520 employees and invested $750 million in the state.
WEDC estimates suggest 281 of Foxconn’s jobs would count for tax credits under its contract, if the company were building its original plant, as would around $300 million in capital expenditures.
Not all of Foxconn’s spending in the state qualifies for tax credits. A third-party audit required by the contract found around $415 million spending through the end of 2019. Foxconn has continued to move forward with a number of projects this year, potentially accounting for the additional investment cited by the company.
Foxconn said it will soon take occupancy of part of its nearly 1 million-square-foot advanced manufacturing facility in Mount Pleasant. The company also highlighted its progress on a 296,000-square-foot smart manufacturing center that will be home to data server and data server rack production.
“As demand grows for reliable and secure data transmission, Foxconn is positioned to capture a substantial percentage of data server market share in the United States,” the company said.
Foxconn is building a high-performance computing data center and has completed a 120,000-square-foot multi-purpose building on its Mount Pleasant campus.
[caption id="attachment_514047" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Recent aerial photo of the Foxconn campus in Mount Pleasant. Shot by Curtis Waltz of aerialscapes.com[/caption]
