Keer Group, China, is investing $218 million to establish Keer America Corp. in Indian Land, S.C. The company will build a 230,000-square-foot yarn manufacturing facility and create 501 jobs.
“We chose to locate our first U.S. facility in South Carolina for a number of reasons, which include the state’s workforce, proximity to cotton producers and access to the port,” said Zhu Shan Qing, chairman, Keer Group. “We look forward to a successful partnership with the state and the local community as we get this facility up and running during the next year.”
Keer will produce industrial cotton yarn using regionally grown cotton, and will export the yarn to China via the Port of Charleston, S.C.
“The South Carolina Ports Authority is pleased to fulfill the Keer Group’s export needs through the Port of Charleston’s eight direct service routes to China,” said Jim Newsome, president and CEO, South Carolina Ports Authority. “The Southeast region, and South Carolina in particular, continues to see export growth driven by manufacturing, and Keer’s major investment signals its potential to soon become one of our state’s largest exporters.”
Keer expects to begin production at the plant in the first quarter of 2015.
January/February/March 2014