Virginia Forge, a steel processing plant in Buchanan, is planning to invest $4.6 million to expand its operations and hire 38 additional employees.

In exchange, the company will get a break on local taxes worth about $66,000 over the next four years as part of a performance agreement approved Tuesday by the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors.

About 70 people currently work at the facility, plant manager Mark Hoosier said.

Workers at the plant forge steel into automotive wheel hubs and assemblies. Forging is a process in which steel is heated and then pressed into high-strength parts known as forgings.

Expanding the operation will help Virginia Forge compete for new contracts, the board of supervisors was told Tuesday.

Under the terms of the performance agreement, the company will spend about $4.6 million, in part on new buildings and equipment over the next four years. In addition, at least 38 new jobs will be created that pay an average annual salary of $30,534.

If Virginia Forge meets those targets, it will receive grants from the county’s Industrial Development Authority that will offset the amount it pays to the county in real estate and machinery and tools taxes on its new investments through 2018.

The total maximum amount of the incentives is $66,607, although the amount could be smaller if the company does not meet its projections.

Virginia Forge is one of the largest employers in Buchanan.

 

roanoke.com

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