Construction of a $2.8 billion fertilizer plant is still on track following the resolution of a dispute with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the facility’s developers say.
Construction of the Midwest Fertilizer Co. project in Posey County has been planned since 2016 but encountered delays, the Evansville Courier & Press reports. Things began moving forward again in 2017 as the Indiana Economic Development Corp. (IEDC) offered incentives under under Gov. Eric Holcomb’s administration.
However, the IRS ruled initially that $1.259 billion in bond funding did not qualify as tax exempt. The agency’s Office of Appeals decided the bonds, which make up a significant portion of the $2.79 billion construction budget, are tax exempt, company spokesman Roger Harvey said.
“We remain focused on moving forward with our plans for the state-of-the-art fertilizer manufacturing complex in Posey County, Indiana,” Harvey said in a statement. “The wonderful support from the State of Indiana and the Posey County Commissioners has been tremendous and much appreciated.”
Midwest Fertilizer chose to base the 220 acre (89 hectares) plant in Posey County because the IEDC offered a tax incentive package in late 2012. The package included tax-exempt financing through the distribution of a share of the state’s volume cap under a federal disaster-relief bond program.
IEDC also offered to provide as much as $2.9 million in provisional tax credits and up to $400,000 training subsidies based on Midwest Fertilizer’s job creation projections.
Former Indiana governor (and current US vice-president) Mike Pence ended the state’s support for the project a day after taking office in January 2013, but things started up again with Gov. Holcomb’s support.
Midwest Fertilizer says it expects to create around 2,500 construction-related jobs. The company has not commented on when construction will commence.
