A team from global law firm K&L Gates LLP recently advised automotive manufacturer Sungwoo Hitech America Corp on the identification and selection of the company’s first U.S. site, a 380,000 square foot facility in Telford, Tennessee. The team also successfully secured more than $7 million in economic incentives for the project from the State of Tennessee, Washington County, and the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Economic incentives partner Olivia Byrne and project manager Tamara Cheeseboro (both Washington, D.C.) led the team that advised Sungwoo Hitech on the matter, assisted by partners Tyler Won (Seoul), Andrew Cook (Washington, D.C..), Ryan Lee (Nashville), and Todd Southwell (Chicago), along with associate Alex Kaplan (Washington, D.C.), practice administrator Dale Proctor (Washington, D.C.), and paralegal Jinhee Cho (Washington, D.C.), on corporate, litigation, and real estate areas.

Byrne commented: “After searching for sites and large industrial buildings in Ohio, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi in addition to Tennessee, we were fortunate to locate a facility well-suited for Sungwoo Hitech: the largest existing manufacturing structure available in Northeast Tennessee. We were delighted to assist them in selecting and securing incentives for this location.”

Sungwoo Hitech manufactures metal stamped body parts and battery enclosure for the automotive industry with 17,500 employees at 26 production facilities in 10 countries around the globe. The company’s Telford facility will produce bumpers, rear floor components, and side framing for customers including General Motors, Hyundai, Kia, Volkswagen, and BMW. Renovations on the 380,000 square foot facility are underway, with manufacturing slated to begin in early 2022.