Japanese Chemical Company UBE Announces $500 Million Investment to Build Louisiana Facility to Serve Growing EV Battery Market

Posted on by Michael Randle

JEFFERSON PARISH, La. – Japanese chemical company UBE Corporation announced it will invest $500 million to establish the first U.S. manufacturing facility for key electric vehicle (EV) Lithium Ion Battery (LiB) ingredients dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC). The project, which is intended to bolster the domestic battery components supply chain by reducing the current heavy reliance on Chinese imports, will be located at Cornerstone Energy Park (CEP) in Jefferson Parish.

A newly formed company known as UBE C1 Chemicals America, Inc. (UCCA), expects to create nine direct new jobs for UCCA, and 47 direct new jobs for Cornerstone Chemical Company, LLC, in support of UBE operations that will transition to UCCA over time. UBE estimates the project will also result in approximately 300 construction jobs at the peak of construction.

“This $500 million investment reinforces Louisiana’s leadership in the electric vehicle battery components supply chain, and is another win for southeast Louisiana’s manufacturing workforce, which is second to none,” LED Secretary Susan Bonnett Bourgeois said. “This decision by UBE Corporation is a vote of confidence from the global marketplace in Louisiana’s strategic location, rich natural resources and skilled workers.”

DMC and EMC are used to produce the electrolyte in lithium-ion batteries that contributes to extended battery life and increased driving range for electric vehicles. DMC is also a key ingredient in certain semiconductor manufacturing processes.

“UBE’s proprietary nitrite process, which we have been developing since the 1970s, enables us to realize a very limited environmental impact and much fewer by-products compared to other existing plants and processes, particularly in mainland China,” said Masato Izumihara, president and representative director of UBE. “This manufacturing facility will be UBE’s first large-scale chemical facility in the United States and CEP offers not only a strategic location, but Cornerstone Chemical Company, LLC, also offers raw materials needed for manufacturing, an abundant labor force and competitive logistic capabilities.”

UBE estimates its new facility will be capable of producing 100,000 metric tons of DMC per year and 40,000 metric tons of EMC, derived from DMC, annually. The company expects construction to begin before the end of the year, pending all necessary permit approvals. Construction is scheduled for completion in mid-2026 with operations to begin in late 2026.

To secure the project, the state of Louisiana offered a competitive incentives package that includes the comprehensive workforce development solutions of LED FastStart. The company is also expected to participate in Louisiana’s Industrial Tax Exemption and Quality Jobs programs.

“This project directly aligns with JEDCO’s efforts to generate quality jobs, investment and opportunities within the environmental and engineering industry,” said JEDCO President and CEO Jerry Bologna. “UBE’s investment in our community signals that Jefferson Parish can be a key player in this global industry. We are proud to support UBE’s project in Jefferson Parish and look forward to the significant economic impact it will have on our community.”

“It is an honor to welcome such a well-respected, multi-generational Japanese company to Jefferson Parish,” said Michael Hecht, president and CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc. “UBE’s new facility furthers Louisiana’s emergence as a leading location for future energy projects by establishing the first electric vehicle battery supply chain project in the Southeast Region. UBE’s operations will also bolster national security efforts by serving as the only U.S. site to provide these critical elements of the country’s energy supply chain.”

Register here to be notified about UBE job opportunities, hiring events and news updates.

About UBE Corp.
UBE Corp. is a Japanese chemical company manufacturing a wide variety of products including chemicals, plastics, battery materials, pharmaceuticals, and machinery. Its chemicals business is expanding from basic chemicals to high-functional products in advanced fields. Founded in 1897 in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, UBE Corp. provides products and services throughout Japan and around the world. Read more at UBE.co.jp/ube.

About LED
Louisiana Economic Development is responsible for strengthening the state’s business environment and creating a more vibrant economy. In 2023, LED attracted more than $25 billion of capital investment resulting in the creation of 19,000 potential new and retained jobs. Explore how LED cultivates jobs and economic opportunity for the people of Louisiana and employers of all sizes at OpportunityLouisiana.com.

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Nick Saban addressing Alabama Mercedes workers as union push intensifies

Posted on by Michael Randle

Former Alabama coach Nick Saban is addressing workers at Mercedes-Benz’s Vance plant on Thursday, according to reports.

Labor journalist Luis Feliz Leon and the Alabama Political Reporter posted what appears to be a flyer notifying employees about the mandatory event.

In a statement, Mercedes-Benz said Saban was invited to speak to employees after he announced his retirement back in January.

“Mercedes-Benz U.S. International (MBUSI) has a long-standing relationship with Nick Saban and he has visited MBUSI numerous times throughout his time as Head Coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide to offer his insights on leadership and team performance,” the company’s statement reads. “Shortly after his retirement announcement in January, we invited him again to speak to our Team Members. We are honoring his retirement and incredible success as the Football Coach for the University of Alabama, while thanking him for his motivational words over the years and for his impact on the community.”

AL.com

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What does ‘signing a union card’ mean? Understanding the UAW effort in Alabama

Posted on by Michael Randle

The United Auto Workers (UAW) is in the midst of a potentially-historic drive to organize in the Deep South’s auto plants.

But in a deeply conservative, right-to-work state, it might be tough to understand the process by which a workforce is represented by a union.

On Tuesday, the UAW announced that a majority of employees at Mercedes-Benz’s U.S. International (MBUSI) plant in Vance had signed union cards. That’s less than two months after the union began organizing at the plant.

About 6,000 people work at MBUSI, which was the first auto plant to locate in Alabama and Mercedes-Benz’s first in North America.

A few weeks ago, the union announced 30% percent of the employees at Hyundai’s Montgomery plant had also signed cards.

However, signing a union card does not mean someone had joined a union.

According to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), it is only the first step.

AL.com

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Is the Great Resignation over? Here’s how turnover is trending in Texas

Posted on by Michael Randle

The turnover tsunami is over by most measures and high-profile layoffs are a frequent occurrence, but Texas is one of the states leading the way in job openings.

That’s according to a Business Journals analysis of turnover and job-opening data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In Texas, job openings are increasing, while quits — or voluntary separations — are decreasing.

There were 32,000 fewer total quits from October to November 2023, with only North Carolina beating the Lone Star State with 43,000 fewer quits during the same period.

However, there were 129,000 layoffs in November 2023, which was an increase of 18,000 from the previous month.

Recruiters and economists say the hiring environment has largely stabilized from the frantic pandemic-recovery phase — although many large corporations are now right-sizing and trimming labor costs after their hiring surges in 2021 and 2022. San Antonio Business Journal

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Bell weighing Fort Worth site for $429M plant, seeking incentives under new program

Posted on by Michael Randle

One of the world’s largest military helicopter manufacturers is considering Fort Worth for a $429 million project, one of the first to seek tax incentives under a new program approved by state legislators last year.

Fort Worth-based Bell Textron Inc. is weighing construction of an advanced manufacturing plant in a vacant 447,373-square-foot building at 15100 N. Beach St. in its home city, according to an application for tax incentives through the Jobs, Energy, Technology and Innovation Act. The plant could create more than 400 relatively high-paying jobs.

Bell officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Fort Worth property, previously occupied by Stanley Black and Decker Tooling, is one of several sites in three finalist states Bell is evaluating for a facility that would produce component parts for aircraft.

The new incentives program, Chapter 403, went into effect Jan. 16, about six months after the Texas Legislature narrowly passed the bill that created it.

Dallas Business Journal

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Rocket City: Firefly’s growth primes sleepy Central Texas town for new business

Posted on by Michael Randle

Firefly Aerospace is on the rise.

What started with one rocket testing stand in rural Central Texas has grown into a commercial space payload company that plans four rocket launches this year, six to eight next year and a dozen in 2026.

To accommodate the increasingly fast pace of rocket production, Firefly recently revealed that it has doubled its manufacturing space and added new rocket testing stands where it fires the engines up on the ground to help troubleshoot and prove out their capabilities.

Firefly’s expansion and its new contract with Northrup Grumman Corp. could spur more growth in and around Briggs, a small, sleepy town north of Leander, Firefly CEO Bill Weber told the Business Journal. Austin Business Journal

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Burr & Forman Grows Nashville Office with Addition of Matthew Rogers

Posted on by Michael Randle

Burr & Forman is pleased to announce the arrival of Matthew Rogers to the firm’s Nashville office as an associate in the Commercial Litigation practice group.

Matthew handles construction-related litigation, contract disputes, first and third-party insurance coverage matters, general insurance defense, insurance appraisal, public adjuster disputes, and bad faith and extra-contractual litigation. He has experience handling defense-related litigation in both State and Federal Courts in all three grand divisions of Tennessee.

“We are pleased to have a lawyer of Matthew’s caliber join the Nashville office and contribute to our continued growth in Nashville and throughout the Burr & Forman footprint,” said Ken Bryant, managing partner of the firm’s Nashville office.

Prior to practicing law, Matthew worked as a Field Claims Representative for over seven years in the insurance industry with a national insurer, where he handled property and liability claims in Tennessee and assisted with Catastrophe claims throughout the southeastern United States. Matthew’s Property & Casualty training and claims experience give him a unique advantage in litigated matters.

Matthew obtained his Juris Doctor from the Nashville School of Law. Before completing law school, Matthew obtained his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Tennessee.

Burr & Forman LLP

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State of Georgia Breaks Export Records for Third Straight Year

Posted on by Michael Randle

Governor Brian P. Kemp today joined the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) in announcing that the state surpassed $49.7 billion in exports in 2023, eclipsing the record-setting $47 billion in 2022. The state currently ranks seventh in the U.S. for dollar value of trade, facilitating more than $186 billion in total trade to 222 unique countries and territories, and 12th in the country for dollar value of exports.

“For the third year in a row, Georgia has broken every record when it comes to exports, bringing billions of dollars to communities all across the state,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “With an estimated 87 percent of those exports coming from small businesses, these numbers are further evidence of just how Georgia means opportunity for all. International trade touches every county in the state, supporting jobs in logistics, manufacturing, agriculture, and more. You can truly make anything here and reach markets all over the world.”

Top exports for 2023 included civilian aircraft products, motor vehicles, turbojets and turbines, poultry, and chemical woodpulp products. Canada, Mexico, China, Germany, and Singapore were the top destinations for Georgia exports.

Georgia Department of Economic Development

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UAW targeting South, Georgia as part of new union drive

Posted on by Michael Randle

For decades, union power in the auto industry has been in reverse, and in the South, it hasn’t gotten traction at all, but the United Auto Workers has vowed to get organized labor back into the fast lane.

The UAW in late February committed $40 million to an organizing drive aimed at non-union workers at auto and battery plants, especially in the South, targets that include large Georgia factories — some in operation, some still being built.

How much of that is in play?

“All of it,” said UAW spokesman Josh Furman. “It’s a national fund and there is a major Georgia component,”

The ambitious plans represent a high-speed turnaround from decades in which the once powerful union’s membership and clout shrunk.

Atlanta Journal Constitution

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Second new Vogtle nuclear unit connects to the grid for the first time

Posted on by Michael Randle

The long-delayed second new nuclear reactor at Plant Vogtle near Augusta reached another milestone Friday afternoon when it synced with the electric grid for the first time, Georgia Power said.

Connecting to the grid is a key step on the path to placing the unit, known as Unit 4, into service. The development comes about two weeks after the company began a self-sustaining fission reaction inside Unit 4′s reactor, a stage known as “initial criticality.”

In a release, Georgia Power said operators will continue testing the unit as they raise its power to 100%.

Unit 4 was supposed to begin providing electricity to Georgians by the end of March, but an issue discovered in one of its critical cooling systems during start-up testing triggered a new delay. The company says the problem has been fixed, but Unit 4 is now expected to enter service sometime between April and June.

The new Vogtle units are the first new commercial reactors built from scratch in the U.S. in more than three decades. Unit 3 has been in service since last July and once Unit 4 is complete, the two reactors combined will produce enough electricity to power 1 million homes, without adding heat-trapping carbon pollution to the atmosphere.

Atlanta Journal Constitution

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