A $33 million modernization project at Honeywell’s chemical and refrigerant gases manufacturing facility in Baton Rouge has been completed.
Gov. Bobby Jindal and Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies President and CEO Darius Adamczyk announced the completion Monday afternoon, saying the project extends the life of Honeywell’s existing facility, retains 200 jobs and creates 11 new ones with an average salary of $64,000. Louisiana Economic Development also estimates the project has created an additional 52 new indirect jobs in the area.
The plant expansion, which officials say made the Baton Rouge site more competitive, included the construction of a new production line to produce an innovative, environmentally preferable product for use in energy-efficient insulation and in aerosol and refrigerant applications.
State and Honeywell officials first announced the expansion project in July 2011. At that time officials said the plant was at risk of closing if it did not upgrade to manufacture a new product line. The state is providing Honeywell with a $1.25 million Modernization Tax Credit for the project, which the company will be able to claim over five years. Honeywell is also expected to benefit from Louisiana’s Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption programs. The former incentive provides a cash rebate of up to 6% of the company’s payroll for up to a decade on new jobs created, while the latter provides a full abatement of local property taxes for a decade  on new capital investment.
The project is in addition to separate Honeywell projects announced last year for sites in Caddo, Ascension and East Baton Rouge parishes. Jindal and Honeywell officials announced in July 2013 the company’s plans to invest a total of $208 million at four plants in the three parishes.
