MILWAUKEE (AP) - The Latest on the deal for a planned $10 billion Foxconn manufacturing plant in Wisconsin (all times local):
6:20 p.m.
Gov. Scott Walker and Foxconn CEO Terry Gou watched the white wings of Milwaukee’s art museum open over them to mark their agreement to have the electronics manufacturer build its first U.S. plant in Wisconsin.
Walker and Gou noted the symbolism of the wings has special significance because the project to bring Foxconn to Wisconsin was called “Flying Eagle.” The art museum building is a white, winged-shaped structure designed by Santiago Calatrava that sits on Lake Michigan.
The deal was made official Thursday with the signing of a memorandum of understanding that calls for Foxconn to invest $10 billion in Wisconsin and eventually create 13,000 jobs in exchange for $3 billion in tax credits. Walker says the project says to the world, “We have arrived, the eagle has landed.”
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6 p.m.
The deal Wisconsin signed with Foxconn requires the Legislature to pass a $3 billion incentive package no later than Sept. 30.
Gov. Scott Walker and Foxconn CEO Terry Gou signed the memorandum of understanding Thursday at the Milwaukee art museum. It says Foxconn commits to investing $10 billion in the state and create 13,000 jobs over six years, with an average salary of nearly $54,000.
Wisconsin promises to extend $3 billion in tax breaks, but the Legislature must approve those. The Republican-controlled Legislature is expected to consider them in a special session next month.
No site has been selected yet, but Foxconn is eyeing the southeast part of the state. The deal calls for buying at least 1,000 acres of land and expediting the permit process to facilitate construction of the plant by 2020.
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5:45 p.m.
Foxconn CEO Terry Gou says he chose Wisconsin as the home of the first display panel manufacturing site because of Gov. Scott Walker and his leadership team.
Gou spoke Thursday in Milwaukee at a ceremony where he and Walker signed a memorandum of understanding. Foxconn says it intends to invest up to $10 billion in the state and employ 3,000 initially, but that could grow to 13,000.
Gou praises Walker for traveling to see him on a weekend, joking that no one works on weekends. He also says he picked Wisconsin because it is in the heart of the United States.
Walker has been touting the deal as a once-a-generation opportunity that will transform Wisconsin’s economy. As part of the deal, Wisconsin is proposing giving Foxconn up to $3 billion in performance-based tax breaks.
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3:30 p.m.
Now that Wisconsin has landed a coveted Foxconn plant it will need to quickly transition to a more highly skilled workforce than the assembly lines that established the state’s manufacturing legacy.
The electronics giant known for making Apple products in China Foxconn has not said what type of jobs it will offer in order to produce liquid-crystal display panels that are used in televisions and computer screens. But some of the higher-end positions could be for engineers and software developers and those jobs aren’t always easy to fill.
Foxconn on Wednesday announced plans to build a $10 billion factory in southeastern Wisconsin that officials say can transform the state’s economy. But lawmakers still have to seal the deal by approving a package of incentives for a company that hasn’t always followed through on its plans.
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9 a.m.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says critics of the state’s proposed $3 billion deal to land a $10 billion Foxconn manufacturing plant should rest easy.
Walker said in an interview Thursday on WTMJ-AM that Taiwan-based Foxconn will only get the money if it fulfills its promise to build the plant and hire up to 13,000 workers. Walker says the incentives will go down proportionately if Foxconn spends or hires less than promised.
Some Democratic critics have questioned the cost of the incentives and pointed to Foxconn’s history of making big promises on investment only to not follow through.
The Wisconsin Legislature must approve the deal in a special session expected in August.
President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that Foxconn had chosen Wisconsin to build its first U.S. plant to manufacture display screens.
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2:53 a.m.
President Donald Trump says that electronics giant Foxconn will build a $10 billion factory in Wisconsin that’s expected to initially create 3,000 jobs. It’s the largest economic development project in state history.
The announcement Wednesday comes at a critical juncture for a Trump administration that pledged to generate manufacturing jobs but has struggled to deliver results as quickly as the president promised. Trump’s plans for health care and tax cuts face a murky future in Congress, while his administration is bogged down by an investigation into Russia’s possible ties with his presidential campaign.
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