Jacksonville, FL — Jacksonville’s City Council has approved $3.4 million in incentives for JinkoSolar to set up shop on the First Coast, with the hope that the global solar panel manufacturer will look at growing in the future.
The State will also have to chip in $800,000 to round out the incentives package.
WOKV has been following the City's attempt to bring in JinkoSolar for months. In fact, in January, a much larger incentives package was approved- more than $53 million overall to bring 800 jobs and invest $410 million in two facilities. That deal is now being rescinded, and this new package is in its place- 200 jobs and a $50.5 million investment in one building.
The City says paring down the deal was JinkoSolar’s decision. Council Vice President Aaron Bowman tells our partner Action News Jax that it’s still a solid deal.
“I think they evaluated their business plan and looked at the market and decided that, maybe not right now jump in full, but get started, and if things go better, they will expand in the future,” Bowman says.
He plans to meet with company officials tomorrow to talk about their hiring plans.
The brunt of the City incentives is in the form of a Recaptured Enhanced Value grant of up to $3.2 million, to be paid out over ten years. The grant is designed to acknowledge the impact a company has on an area, by paying them a portion of the increase in property value. The remaining $2,000 in City incentives and the $800,000 from the State are for a Qualified Tax Industry grant, which is paid out per job.
The City describes JinkoSolar as a “worldwide leader in the manufacture of photovoltaic solar modules”, which employs more than 15,000 people at eight manufacturing sites worldwide. They intend to lease an existing building at the Cecil Commerce Center and invest $50.5 million in production equipment, furnishing, and building improvements.
The 200 jobs will be created by the end of next year, and have an average wage of $45,562.
The Jacksonville City Council approved the incentives by a unanimous vote Tuesday night.
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