In 2020, South Carolina won 126 economic projects, accounting for $ 4 billion in capital investment and 11,147 jobs.
The SC Commerce Department’s annual industry recruitment report (.pdf) showed an increase from 2019, when the state recruited $ 2.4 billion in economic investment. Mark Anthony Brewing Co.’s $ 400 million investment in a new production facility in Richland County has outperformed the capital investment projects carried out in 2020 and is expected to bring 300 jobs to the state.
“The South Carolina team continues to cultivate a diverse economy in every corner of our state,” said SC Commerce Secretary Bobby Hitt in a press release. “To increase our recruitment to $ 4 billion in capital investment, especially over an unprecedented year, it takes a remarkable amount of collaboration and unwavering commitment from many partners across this state.”
The agricultural technology campus in Hampton County ranked second in capital investment, with $ 314 million, and brought the most projected jobs to the state, with 1,500, followed by Walmart’s new distribution center in Dorchester County, which should create 1,000 jobs. The distribution center was responsible for $ 220 million in capital investment, while the expansion of Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. in Lexington County it was responsible for $ 215.8 million (fourth) and 380 jobs (sixth).
The new projects accounted for 54% of the investment in 2020, with expansions accounting for 46%. Most of the investment was domestic, with 64% of American companies, followed by 10% from Canada and 6% from China.
Among specific industry sectors, agribusiness generated almost 3,000 jobs and, although urban projects account for 72% of the investment in 2020, capital investment in rural communities in SC almost doubled year on year, reaching more than $ 1, 1 billion.