Strategic Development Group helps Thai company select site, negotiate incentives for ethane cracker project

Sep 25, 2015

Indorama Ventures announces $175M investment in Southwest Louisiana.

Strategic Development Group (SDG), one of the nation’s leading site selection and economic development consulting firms, has helped client Indorama Ventures select a location for its new U.S. facility and secure state and local incentives.

Indorama will restart a dormant ethane cracker facility near Lake Charles, La., making a $175 million capital investment and resulting in 600-plus direct and indirect jobs. Based in Bangkok, Thailand, Indorama Ventures Public Co. Ltd., has through its U.S. subsidiary, Indorama Ventures Olefins LLC, acquired the facility and approximately 250 acres.

Strategic Development Group provided site selection services and facilitated negotiations with state and local government officials and utilities, according to SDG President Mark Williams.

“Ultimately, the company chose Louisiana for the availability of an existing facility and the strength of the state’s workforce training programs,” Williams said. “Incentives also played a role in the company’s decision and we were honored to negotiate with state and local leaders on the company’s behalf, resulting in a strong package.”

According to CEO Aloke Lohia, Indorama is targeting a commercial startup before the end of 2017, making the company the first from Thailand to take advantage of the shale gas revolution in the U.S. By finding an existing facility, the company will be ahead of the greenfield crackers being constructed. For more information, see the news release from Louisiana Economic Development.

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Mac Farr

Consultant

Mac Farr joined Strategic Development Group in 2017 as a project consultant and works closely with the Company’s senior team on activities related to incentive negotiation and site location analysis. In addition, he undertakes demographics and workforce analysis for SDG’s clients.

Prior to joining SDG, Mac worked in the commercial development industry and, in his time with a boutique development firm, led a diverse team to undertake all aspects of the development process, including project budgeting, site selection, pre-construction due diligence and construction management. He is a licensed real estate broker.

Mac earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina with a focus on Real Estate and Marketing. Mac lives in Columbia and when he is not working he enjoys exploring the mountains of western North Carolina.

Danielle Campolo

Senior Principal

As Strategic Development Group’s Senior Principal, Danielle Campolo works closely with clients to conduct site evaluation, site selection, and incentive negotiation projects for major US and multi-national corporations in automotive, aerospace, chemical, rubber, healthcare, energy, and nutraceutical industries. She enjoys working with corporate decision makers to select the optimal site for their business ventures, while considering operational, logistical, labor, and other business related costs.

From providing in-depth analysis related to specific business locational cost comparisons, to incentive negotiation strategies facilitating successful site location, Danielle collaborates with decision makers on projects of all sizes to maximize the value of economic benefits and to ensure incentives offered are on time and as stated.

Danielle has been instrumental in the successful completion of numerous site location projects for large global corporations, including JTEKT / Koyo Corporation, Nutramax Laboratories, LKQ Corporation, BP Chemical, and Bridgestone / Firestone. Her most successful projects are due, in large part, to her specialized service and attention at every level. And when it comes to public sector work, Danielle continues to offer strategic planning, goal setting, marketing studies, site evaluation and certification, best practices analysis, and organizational evaluations to numerous county, regional and state economic development programs across the country.

Danielle has a joint degree in Marketing and Small Business Management, as well as a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of South Carolina’s Moore School of Business.

Jeannette Goldsmith

Vice President

Jeannette Goldsmith is Vice President of Strategic Development Group, where she specializes in site selection and incentive negotiations for clients worldwide. Jeannette’s background spans more than 20 years in site location consulting, incentive negotiations, and economic development consulting with McCallum Sweeney and then with her own company, Goldsmith Strategy. Her specific experience includes a heavy focus on manufacturing (specifically, aerospace, logistics, advanced materials and automotive sectors), as well as office sectors. Recent clients include Suntory, Boeing, Nissan North America, Suncoke Energy and Vought Aircraft. Among Jeannette’s most notable projects, are Nissan North America’s headquarter relocation from Los Angeles to Nashville, the Boeing 7E7 Final Assembly siting project and the Vought Aircraft / Alenia Aeronautica 7E7 supplier site project. Her most recent economic development assignments include evaluating automotive assembly sites for NCRR and developing and implementing a site certification program for Mississippi Power Company. In addition, she recently completed an economic development strategic plan for Transylvania County, NC and Citrus County, FL. Jeannette has designed several site certification programs, including the South Carolina Department of Commerce Certified Site Program, the Mississippi Power Certified Site Program and the site evaluation program for Duke Energy. Jeannette achieved a Masters of Public Policy from Duke University and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from Smith College. She was honored with the Graduate Student of the Year Award from the Terry Sanford Institute in 1995 and is a proud member of the Site Selectors Guild, South Carolina Economic Developers Association, as well as the International Economic Development Council.

Mark Williams

President

As Founder and President of Strategic Development Group, Mark Williams specializes in manufacturing and office facility site selection and negotiation for mid- to large-size US and multinational corporations in automotive, distribution, life science, steel and chemical sectors. From strategic planning to marketing studies, Mark also provides a variety of economic development consulting services to state, regional and local economic development organizations across the US.

Prior to founding Strategic Development Group, Mark served as Chief Development Officer for the South Carolina Department of Commerce, where he directed South Carolina’s domestic and global business recruitment activities, including the operation of Commerce’s international offices in Frankfurt and Tokyo. He has served as an advisor to US governors, mayors, legislators and directors of state development agencies in matters related to business retention, strategic planning and target marketing initiatives.

Nationally recognized as an expert economic developer, Mark has earned the professional designations of Certified Economic Developer (CED) and Certified Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP). He chaired the former American Economic Development Council’s Certification Board, which certified professional economic developers in the US and Canada, and was President of the South Carolina Economic Developers Association.

Mark is currently an active member and Chairman of the Site Selectors Guild, a professional association comprised of the world’s most respected site selection consultants, and is a frequent US and international speaker on site selection trends. Other recognitions include being named “One of the Top 10 Site Consultants that know the South Best” and “One of the Top 3 Site Consultants in South Carolina” by Southern Business and Development magazine. Mark has also received the Order of the Palmetto, the highest honor that can be given to a South Carolina citizen, for his success in business recruiting.