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ADECA

April 30, 2019
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Gov. Ivey awards grants to help create new jobs in Bibb County
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MONTGOMERY— Gov. Kay Ivey has awarded a total of nearly $785,000 in grants to create at least 265 new jobs in the automotive industry in Bibb County.

Ivey awarded a $514,606 Community Development Block Grant to the town of West Blocton and a $270,360 CDBG to the Bibb County Commission to assist with infrastructure needed for the expansion of Mercedes Benz U.S. International at Scott G. Davis Industrial Park.

Mercedes is planning a $1 billion expansion of its Alabama automobile manufacturing plant to produce its new Mercedes-Benz GLE vehicle. Part of that expansion will take place in Bibb County. Projections are that the Bibb County facility may employ as many as 600 people within five years of completion.

“Since locating in Alabama more than 20 years ago, Mercedes-Benz has led the way in the state’s steady increase in attracting manufacturers of high-quality automobiles,” Ivey said. “I salute Mercedes-Benz in their latest expansion, and I commend Alabama’s workforce for being key to that success.

The funds to West Blocton will be used to improve sewer services from the town’s wastewater treatment plant to serve the new Mercedes-Benz battery plant in the town of Woodstock. The Bibb County Commission will use its grant to construct a 300,000-gallon water tank and a booster pump to serve the plant.

The 1-million-square-foot plant will feature a battery analysis center geared toward producing electric vehicles. Mercedes is investing an estimated $300 million in the plant and machinery.

The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the grants from funds made available by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“ADECA is fully committed to Governor Ivey’s vision of bringing new jobs to Alabama and helping the state grow and prosper,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “We are tremendously excited by this project and the impact it will have on the region.”

ADECA administers an array of programs supporting law enforcement and traffic safety, economic development, energy conservation, water resource management and recreation development.

Contact Jim Plott or Mike Presley


For more information, visit:  http://www.adeca.alabama.gov/