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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowIndiana is one of two Midwestern states in the running for a potential $50 billion semiconductor plant, according to the Indiana Economic Development Corp. The IEDC also disclosed that it is courting a $3.2 billion data center project that could result in 250 high-wage jobs in Boone County.
The semiconductor plant would be among the most expensive ever built worldwide, if not the costliest.
To help land the mega deals, the quasi-public agency is asking for $122 million from a $500 million deal closing fund—approved by state lawmakers in this year’s budget—to acquire roughly 1,000 acres of land in Boone County that is already under contract. The IEDC is also seeking $16 million to purchase 290 acres for the data center.
Both properties are located in the LEAP Lebanon Innovation District, a planned advanced manufacturing area northwest of Lebanon that could span as much as 11,000 acres. LEAP is an acronym for “Limitless Exploration/Advanced Pace.”
If Indiana is chosen for the semiconductor project, it would be the largest single economic development project in the state’s history. In 2022, 218 companies committed to investing more than $22 billion for Indiana projects, marking the highest capital investment since the IEDC was established in 2005, according to the agency.
The unnamed semiconductor manufacturer is expected to decide later this year between Indiana and the other Midwestern state.
The IEDC said it anticipates including the property as a credit as part of a broader incentive package for the semiconductor company that will be developed over the next few months.
The agency declined to disclose specific company names or more details about the projects.
“Thanks to the continued leadership of the legislature, the IEDC has the tools and resources to attract the high-wage economies of the future,” said David Rosenberg, IEDC chief operating officer, in a statement to IBJ. “The IEDC’s request at the State Budget Committee is to access funds passed by the legislature in the budget bill from the $500 million Deal Closing Fund and the $150 million Site Acquisition Strategies Fund. The potential projects associated with the IEDC’s request exceed $50 billion of committed capital investment in high-wage industries of the future.”
The IEDC said it is “active negotiations” with the data center operator on a purchase and sale agreement. The IEDC said it must control the land to close the deal.
The agency has been buying up land for the LEAP District since early 2022. Last year, the agency spent more than $125 million on purchase agreements, paying on average $73,000 per acre for farmland, which is six times the market value for average-quality farmland. The agency says it has around 9,000 acres of land under contract for the district.
The IEDC will make its case to the State Budget Committee, a board made up of four lawmakers and the state budget director that holds public hearings with state agencies to outline their budget requests, during the committee’s meeting Thursday.
If Indiana is not selected for the projects, the money would be transferred to the IEDC’s revolving site-acquisition strategies fund, where it could then be utilized for other economic development opportunities, including selling the land to companies investing within the LEAP District.
The committee will also decide Thursday whether to allocate $35 million in performance incentive grants to General Motors and South Korea-based Samsung SDI for an electric vehicle battery manufacturing operation in St. Joseph County. Indiana was chosen for the site last week.
On Tuesday, the Lebanon Plan Commission heard an introduction of a plan to create a special zoning classification that would set development standards for the district.
An IEDC land-use concept plan included in Tuesday night’s presentation shows 20 different sites at the LEAP district that include uses for mega sites, advanced manufacturing, mixed-use/village center and renewable energy.
The Lebanon City Council has already approved development standards for Lilly’s campus in the LEAP district. Lilly broke ground in April on a 13-building site totaling more than 1.6 million square feet, a projected $3.7 billion investment.
The IEDC chose Boone County as the location for the tech district due to its close proximity to Indianapolis and Purdue University along Interstate 65, but the county does not have enough water on its own to support a massive large-scale manufacturing park, according to hydrologists.
In May, the board of directors for Indianapolis-based utility company Citizens Energy Group voted unanimously to supply water to businesses that locate in the district. The IEDC had requested an initial water supply of 6 million gallons per day by 2026 and 10 million gallons per day by 2027.
To meet the long-term demand for water in the region, the IEDC is planning to tap into a Wabash River aquifer and transport as much as 100 million gallons of water per day to the LEAP District. The water would then be treated and piped into a tributary of the White River or the Eagle Creek Reservoir.
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A data center is very different from a semiconductor plant. Which is it?
One of each is what the story says
Oops! Poor reading comprehension on my part. Thanks, Chris B.
Indiana must be as aggressive as never before for both of these projects.
Take the gloves off and treat economic development as a blood sport.
No consolation prize or participation trophies.
Just win!!
Right on brother!
Try to win … but learn from the example of FoxConn and Wisconsin.
If it happens, this I65 corridor will become the newest, ‘hottest’ hi-tech corporate stretch of development in the country, likely drawing in many others. The nations’ and world geopolitical climate only adds to its pro destination appeal. This is becoming ‘Fortune 100’ territory. Good luck.
Yet some of the locals will still squeal that the land is better used for farming. Remind me the last time we grew semiconductors on a farm, or employed 250 people… still, the “My Heritage!” crowd won’t stop crowing.
Hope the losers suing lose a lot of money.
Let me know how that 3D printed T-bone steak tasted!
Hard to imagine that the business prospects wouldn’t be concerned about water resources. Everyone else in central Indiana and south along Indiana’s river corridors seem to understand what the state’s sales team seems to be ignoring. Water will be displaced from other communities and users, and this will get ugly.
Indiana sits on the largest concentration of fresh water in the world. Water should be among the least concerns.
The other state is Michigan. Go Michigan! They have plenty of water. That makes a lot more sense than piping water across central Indiana. I hope this company looking for a site sees the stupidity and greed of the IEDC and government officials in Indiana.
B.R. Michigan is a poorly ran state. If it wasn’t for the BIG 3 Hq there, Michigan would have been annexed by Indiana and maybe Illinois. Im almost certain that if it’s between Indiana and Michigan, Indiana will win out over Michigan. With IUPUI splitting into two separate schools, IU and Purdue campuses Downtown Indy, or the new IEDC project in Lebanon, or even the GM stamping plant site with Elanco with the new park eleven, Indy eleven stadium ect. That makes Indy hard to beat and im sure talent from Michigan and all over the midwest will be running to Indiana for those positions.
I love our business climate and I approve of the incentives discussed in this article, but our Quality of Life is still in need of nurture. BSR’s comment is an indicator of where all this can lead, but it will only happen if we make progress with schools, crime, parks, sidewalks, liquor laws, and fun activities.
Wow. I wonder be curious to know how long this has been known about by IEDC and Indiana elected officials. Perhaps this spurred the very inception of the LEAP district and land purchases that started around April of 2022. In the same timeframe, right up the road, Purdue announcing deals with MediaTek and SkyWater Technology, and most recently at the G7 Summit, announcing agreements with the likes of Micron and Tokyo Electron to establish the UPWARDS Network, aimed at developing research and workforce in the semiconductor industry. Then, in May, the creation of a discretionary $500M Deal Closing Fund, designed for the very purpose of landing deals such as this. And finally, just a week ago, after a year of indecision, GM and Samsung agreeing to move forward with a $3.5B EV battery plant in St. Joseph County. Great timing, if all by chance, or perhaps just natural, sensical business developement taking place. But maybe, it’s all coming together as planned. Let’s hope Indiana can land this deal, and with the IEDC only requesting $122M of the $500M in the Deal Closing Fund, perhaps it is a sign of more to come.
A lot of this planning was starting when our Indiana legislator and many others were helping pass the CHIP Act to start competing in this space with overseas and the creation of the federal ince tives to jump start that industry more. We are reaping some of those rewards and programs created federally. That drove a big Semiconductor race stateside.
I’m just proud that Indiana is competing with the big boys and holding their own!
Indiana is getting it! They deserve it also!!! Most underated State and City of Indianapolis!!!!!