Nearly 100 companies planning to relocate or expand in SC, commerce chief says

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCSC) – South Carolina’s financial chief stated the state faces more and more tight competitors amongst its neighbors to influence firms to maneuver right here however stated a whole lot of companies are contemplating calling the Palmetto State house sooner or later.

To date this yr, South Carolina Secretary of Commerce Harry Lightsey stated the state has received 93 initiatives of firms relocating or increasing, which he stated will deliver round 5,000 jobs, round half of them in rural areas.

“We even have over 500 lively initiatives of firms that want to find someplace in South Carolina,” he stated.

Lightsey instructed members of the Midlands enterprise neighborhood at a Lexington Chamber & Guests Heart “Enterprise Over Lunch” occasion Monday that his division is focusing proper now on the way it can hold that success going into the longer term.

He stated that features evaluating which components of the state might be particularly engaging to rising firms and restructuring the incentives the state presents to influence them to maneuver to South Carolina.

“We’re going to look actually onerous at our incentive construction and see what we will do to assist companies, perhaps companies which can be simply getting began or can’t make big quantities of capital funding or create hundreds of jobs however may be significant to the state going ahead,” Lightsey stated.

Whereas manufacturing has been a key part of South Carolina’s economic system during the last a number of a long time and continues to be, Lightsey stated industries like well being and life sciences are the place they consider the state is poised for extra progress, pointing to the success of firms like West Columbia-based pharmaceutical producer Nephron Prescription drugs.

“South Carolina has nice property in that space, and I believe we may be very profitable,” he stated. “Simply over the previous couple of years, the fastest-growing sector within the South Carolina economic system, and so we’ve had success and we intend to construct on that.”

Seeking to the longer term, Lightsey stated he desires to proceed creating venture websites by putting in infrastructure together with utilities, saying when firms are fascinated with relocating to South Carolina, one of many primary elements beneath their consideration is how shortly they’ll get operations up and operating.

Lightsey stated he would additionally wish to see the state and its companies focus extra on maintaining graduates of South Carolina’s faculties and universities in South Carolina after they graduate.

“They don’t have to depart this state as a way to work within the expertise sector or to do thrilling genetic analysis or to do work on the chopping fringe of the aerospace trade or the auto trade,” he stated. “All of these forms of jobs can be found proper right here in South Carolina.”

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