(The Center Square) – A North Carolina panel Tuesday approved $5.8 million in taxpayer-funded incentives for a $285 million expansion of a Pratt & Whitney manufacturing plant in Asheville.
The company opened the plant in 2022 to make components for jet airplane engines. The expansion will create an additional 325 jobs paying an average annual salary of $62,413, which is higher than Buncombe County average wage of $55,416.
Economists question the effectiveness of financial incentives to private businesses to expand or come to a new state. The use of hourly or annual wage as an indicator is questioned because salaries of a few corporate leaders can skew the average higher while it would not have the same impact on the median wage.
The company is expanding the Buncombe County plant because of growing worldwide demand for turbine airfoils, a component of aircraft jet engines, according to the state.
“This latest round of investment allows us to add critical process elements for the manufacture of turbine airfoils and increase the overall delivery output of this facility, enabling us to deliver on our customer commitments while creating hundreds of new jobs in the Asheville community,” said Dan Field, Asheville general manager for Pratt & Whitney.
The North Carolina Economic Investment Committee on Tuesday approved a $4.2 million Job Development Investment grant to be paid to Pratt & Whitney over 12 years if the company meets its job creation targets.
Another $1.4 million state grant has been approved for utility improvements at the plant.
Pratt & Whitney received another JDIG grant in 2019 after promising 750 jobs at the Asheville plant by the end of 2026 and 800 jobs by the end of 2027. It has already fulfilled those numbers, with 896 people employed.
Asheville’s competition for the plant expansion was Palm Beach County, Fla., the state said. The availability of skilled labor, cost of operations, business climate and quality of life and state incentives were among the factors considered in the expansion location.
“We will continue to invest in support systems, like our community colleges and universities, that help employers like Pratt & Whitney succeed in our state – and bolster western North Carolina’s economy,” state Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley said in a statement.
Gov. Josh Stein, in a statement, welcomed the news and lamented the area’s recovery from Hurricane Helene.
“Pratt & Whitney clearly sees the opportunities in North Carolina and the strength of our highly skilled workforce. We look forward to welcoming them here,” he said.