TVA works to lure auto plants

The agency said the move could give the Tennessee Valley an advantage in attracting automakers.

“It increases the opportunity of landing the deal and of landing the jobs. It gets us in the game,” said John Bradley, TVA senior vice president of economic development.

TVA is paying McCallum Sweeney Consulting of Greenville, S.C., almost $200,000 to head up the search for mega-sites that have at least 700 to 1,000 contiguous, useable acres.

“We feel we’ve got an opportunity to differentiate ourselves from the competition. We also found out there very likely will be automobile plant locations in the U.S. We’re trying to get a jump on our competition,” Bradley said.

The mega-sites need two railways, an interstate system within 10 to 15 miles, infrastructure to include roads, sewer, water and electricity or plans to install them, and letters of intent to sell from the property owners.

Sites that don’t meet all the needs of automotive manufacturing might be recommended as alternative locations for other industries.

“We’re still working on the requirements,” Bradley said. “If we come up with a handful of sites, we’ll be happy.”

The certification process must determine that the mega-sites will “effectively and efficiently meet an automotive manufacturing or assembly plant’s needs,” according to TVA.

Economic development officials may know where large sites exist, but certification of those sites and identifying the requirements auto companies need has not been done, Bradley said.

The program will kick off with an announcement in Nashville that includes TVA, McCallum Sweeney and economic development people, officials said.

TVA is the nation’s largest public power company, serving 8.5 million people in seven states, including Tennessee.
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Information from: The Knoxville News Sentinel, http://www.knoxnews.com