Foxconn Mulls $7 Billion Investment to Build U.S. Flat-Panel Screen Factory
January 23 2017 - 2:08AM
Dow Jones News
By Eva Dou
BEIJING--Electronics manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group is
considering investing $7 billion to build a flat-panel screen
factory in the U.S., but the company founder says incentives will
be needed to make the deal happen.
Speaking at a Foxconn company event in Taiwan on Sunday, founder
and chairman Terry Gou said the factory could create 30,000 to
50,000 jobs in the U.S., and discussions were already under way
with state and local officials in Pennsylvania and other
states.
The factory would involve Sharp Corp., the Japanese electronics
maker and flat-panel supplier that Foxconn acquired last year, Mr.
Gou said during a speech broadcast by Taiwan media.
The remarks were Mr. Gou's most detailed on the potential
investment since it first came up when U.S. President Donald Trump
met with SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son in the
weeks before Mr. Trump took office.
Standing next to Mr. Trump, Mr. Son held up a sign that had
Foxconn's logo next to Softbank's, and which said "Commit to invest
$50 bln + $7 bln in U.S." Foxconn would only say afterward that it
was evaluating the possibility of U.S. investment. Foxconn,
formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., is the world's
largest electronics contract manufacturer and a major supplier to
Apple Inc.
In his comments Sunday, Mr. Gou indicated that a deal was far
from assured, and that he thought his discussions with Mr. Son were
private and informal.
"But then when he and Trump met with the media, he [Mr. Son]
exposed me, " Mr. Gou said.
Any deal would hinge on getting land and power at bargain rates,
Mr. Gou said.
"If U.S. state governments are willing to provide these terms,
and we calculate and it is cheaper than shipping from China or
Japan, then why wouldn't Sharp build a factory in the U.S.," he
said.
Mr. Gou singled out Pennsylvania as a likely location for a
Foxconn panel factory.
"Right now Pennsylvania is very proactive," he said. "I have to
tell other states to hurry up or we'll go ahead and sign with
Pennsylvania."
Foxconn's chairman made the remarks--broadcast on video by local
media--at an annual company party. A person at the event confirmed
the remarks.
A Foxconn spokeswoman declined to confirm Mr. Gou's statements,
but said the company is considering potential manufacturing
locations in the U.S.
Foxconn had contacted Pennsylvania's state representative in
Taipei in mid-December to inquire about programs for companies
interested in locating operations in the state, said a spokesman
with the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic
Development.
A Foxconn factory in Pennsylvania could help Mr. Trump fulfill
campaign promises to create jobs. He became the first Republican
candidate to win the state since 1988 by pledging, in part, to
bring back jobs to fading steel towns and former manufacturing
areas.
Mr. Gou has been considering a flat-panel factory in the U.S.
for years. In 2014, he said he was evaluating the feasibility of
such a factory, since it was costly to ship large-screen TVs from
Asia. The project never made headway because U.S. local governments
didn't offer terms that were favorable enough, a person familiar
with the matter said.
The company announced a new $8.8 billion flat-panel factory in
southern China's Guangzhou last month, with Mr. Gou praising the
local investment environment.
Tripp Mickle in San Francisco contributed to the article.
Write to Eva Dou at eva.dou@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 23, 2017 01:53 ET (06:53 GMT)
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