The state of Tennessee will build a state-funded training school on the Memphis Regional Megasite where the Ford Motor Co. and SK Innovation are jointly building a $5.6 billion "Blue Oval City" to make automotive batteries and assemble electric-powered F-series Ford trucks.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said the new Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) campus will provide customized training developed in conjunction with the new battery plant and electric-powered truck assembly complex, which are projected to eventually have more than 5,700 employees. Similar to the 26 other TCAT training facilities across Tennessee, including one at the Volkswagen Academy in Chattanooga, the new tech school at the Memphis Regional Megasite will provide specialized technical training for specific jobs concentrating on mechatronics engineering and auto mechanics.
"Leading companies select Tennessee because of our skilled workforce," Lee said. "This unique partnership with Ford and SK Innovation will enable Tennesseans to skill up and meet the specific employment demands of Blue Oval City."
The training assistance is part of $500 million of incentives the state has pledged to land the record-high Ford investment. Lee said Tennessee was competing with 15 other states for the project.
Lee said the proposed incentive package would be split between the two companies based on the jobs each creates. Clawback provisions are included in the incentive package to "make certain that that agreement holds for the years into the future," Lee said.
(READ MORE: Green energy takes hold in unlikely places with Ford project)
Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO, center left, along with Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, center right, answers questions along with after a presentation on the planned factory to build electric F-Series trucks and the batteries to power future electric Ford and Lincoln vehicles Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021, in Memphis, Tenn. The plant in Tennessee is to be built near Stanton, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)The governor plans to call a special legislative session soon to approve the incentive deal.
"We created what we thought was a very attractive incentive," Lee said.
During a challenging year for higher education when many institutions saw a decrease in enrollment, Tennessee added 1,000 students at its TCATs in the fall of 2021 after the state boosted the budgets for TCATs by $79 million to eliminate the 11,400 person TCAT waiting list in 2021. Gov. Lee has prioritized vocational education and apprenticeships, increasing apprenticeships across the state by more than 30 percent since taking office and investing over $30 million in the Governor's Investment in Vocational Education to provide career and technical education in rural communities.
"Technical Colleges are an integral part of Tennessee's workforce development strategy," Tennessee Labor Commissioner Jeff McCord said. "Through technical education, skills gaps are closed and opportunities for good jobs are opened."
Bob Rolfe, the commissioner of the state's Department of Economic and Community Development, said the Ford complex will bring about 33,000 construction jobs with a payroll of about $1.8 billion.
Once the plants are running, Rolfe said there will be about 27,000 direct and indirect jobs with another $1.8 billion per year of payroll. All in, the complex will add about $3.5 billion per year to Tennessee's gross domestic product, a measure of its economic output.
- Compiled by Dave Flessner