Wilh. Schulz GmbH, a Germany-based supplier of piping components, announced plans to build a pipe manufacturing facility in Tunica County, Miss. The $300 million facility is expected to create 500 jobs over the next five years.
"We are delighted Schulz has chosen a site in the Mississippi Delta as the location for its first North American production facility," said Miss. Governor Haley Barbour. "I am proud to welcome this industry leader to our state, and I commend company officials for their commitment to doing business in Mississippi and for the jobs they are creating."
The new plant, to be known as Schulz Xtruded Products, will be the company's first production facility in North America.
"The United States in general and Mississippi in particular is the perfect location for our 'crown investment' supplying the global markets," said Rainer Floeth, managing director and CFO of Schulz. "We were pleased to have worked with state and local officials on this project, and we look forward to doing business in the state in the years to come."
Governor Barbour said he would ask the Legislature to approve state assistance for the project as one of the 2010 Session's first orders of business.
"In today's highly competitive environment for new jobs, we are extremely excited about Schulz’s decision to select Mississippi," said Gray Swoope, executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority. "Schulz's new facility in Tunica County will employ state-of-the-art pipe manufacturing processes, and the company found the skilled and dedicated workforce necessary to make these operations a success here in Mississippi. We looking forward to working with company officials long into the future to help this global company continue to thrive and grow here."