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Samsung is also reviewing locations in Arizona and New York, but a location analyst believes Texas has the best business climate for the factory.
AUSTIN, Texas – Austin is no longer the only city in Texas competing for Samsung’s new semiconductor. The South Korean tech giant also has its sights set on the small but growing city of Taylor, some 35 miles northeast of Austin.
Samsung filed its application with the Texas Auditors on July 6 for an incentive agreement with Taylor ISD that could provide the company with $ 314 million in tax relief over the next decade.
The tech company plans to build a $ 18 billion semiconductor factory that, if selected, will create more than 1,800 jobs in the area.
“This is a really exciting time to be part of Taylor, Texas because of all the development and growth that comes that way,” said Dr. Devin Padavil, Superintendent of Taylor ISD.
Padavil said Samsung isn’t the only company trying to lock land in Taylor.
“I think the exponential rate of groups interested in developing in Taylor says something about how other parties see Taylor as really a gold mine,” said Padavil.
Many companies are trying to take advantage of the Chapter 313 agreement, which is an application to a school district for property tax relief for manufacturing or energy projects such as the Samsung facility. The possibility to apply for this agreement will expire at the end of 2022.
If Taylor hits a deal with the tech company, location analyst John Boyd said it would be one of the largest FDI in the United States in recent history and the largest corporate deal Taylor has ever seen.
With New York and Arizona in the running, Boyd believes Texas has the best business climate for this plant.
“Texas is a great place to do business,” said Boyd. “So a win for Taylor would be a win for the entire region, just as a win for Travis County would be a win for the northern Austin suburbs.”
Austin vs. Taylor: Which is the Better Move?
“I think Samsung identified this location and Taylor as attractive in terms of land available. A Taylor location would bring all of Austin’s advantages in terms of recruitment dynamics and tech talent migration,” said Boyd.
Padavil also believes that Taylor has a very welcoming and community-oriented environment with a growing school system that makes it an attractive place to live.
However, Austin is the country’s emerging technology hub, and Samsung recently acquired over 250 acres off its current manufacturing facility in North Austin.
“It’s not uncommon for companies to actually do due diligence on the final real estate component,” he said.
Samsung is also looking for over $ 1 billion in potential incentive agreements from several Travis County tax authorities if it were to build the new facility on a site near its existing location, according to Texas Audit Bureau records.
However, will Travis County get responses in a timely manner?
During Tuesday’s Commissioner’s Court session, county chairs were briefed on Samsung’s application for an economic development performance agreement to help with tax breaks.
Christy Moffett, executive director of economic and strategic planning, said Samsung wants to finalize a draft contract by mid-August, a timeline she fears is too tight, while it adheres to the county’s new transparency guidelines in December 2020.
Whether Taylor or Austin is the answer, Boyd said, if it stayed in Texas it would catapult the state to a whole new level at a time when semiconductors are badly needed.
“Pretty much every consumer product is based on these semiconductor chips,” said Boyd.
KVUE asked Samsung for an explanation:
“As part of our efforts to effectively respond to global customer needs and growing demand for diverse applications, Samsung plans to invest $ 17 billion to expand our foundry capabilities in the United States. We are still negotiating the expansion of our semiconductor manufacturing facilities. ”, Taking various factors into account, and are examining a number of locations in the USA. Specific details still have to be decided. “
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