WASHINGTON — Audi will receive hundreds of millions of dollars in state tax incentives and grants to build a $4 billion assembly plant in the state of Georgia and is considering a second phase, recently released documents showed.
Audi announced plans on October 25 to build its first U.S. assembly plant near Macon, Georgia, to open in the early 2030s that will produce 200,000 SUVs annually and employ 4,500 workers. The automaker is considering a second phase that would cost another $3 billion and add 3,000 workers by 2033, according to documents released by the Mid-Georgia Gateway Development Authority.
Audi declined to comment.
The state is giving Audi the 1,500-acre site, providing $458 million in tax incentives and more than $120 million in grants for infrastructure, rail improvements, environmental site remediation and construction and another $430 million for water, road improvements, utility issues and workforce training and recruitment.
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Reuters reported last week that the Trump administration has promised tariff relief to Audi to help secure the plant’s future. U.S. officials told Audi executives the government plans to offer broad relief from tariffs for automakers making significant investments in U.S. production.
Two sources briefed on the matter said Audi has pushed the U.S. to reduce the 15 percent tariffs it pays on imports from the EU to 7.5 percent, but that the U.S. Commerce Department was expected to agree to around 10 percent.
The tariff relief program aims to prod automakers to add U.S. production or other investments, the sources added.
Trump’s tariffs on autos, steel, aluminum and parts cost Audi around €1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) last year as it imports all its vehicles for the U.S. market from Europe or Mexico.
