A defense contractor with plans to build a military drone plant in Pickaway County, about 20 minutes south of downtown Columbus, has inked its deal for $310 million in grants from JobsOhio over 10 years. That's about a third of its overall investment.
The powerful private firm that pursues projects on the state’s behalf confirmed the contract execution Wednesday morning in a statement.
“JobsOhio’s assistance aligns with our goal to attract the world’s most cutting-edge companies while creating generational opportunities,” JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef wrote. “We look forward to partnering with Anduril as it hyperscales manufacturing of military platforms through advanced software and production technologies with talent from Ohio.”
For its eventual $910 million investment, Anduril Industries also scored a significant tax break in January, two weeks after publicizing its project.
The Ohio Department of Development’s Tax Credit Authority greenlit a 2.594% refundable Job Creation Tax Credit (JCTC), with terms that begin in 2026 and end in 2055. Anduril could see more than $452.3 million in incentives from that credit alone through 2055, Gov. Mike DeWine’s office said then.
Dubbed “Arsenal-1,” the eventual 5 million square foot facility will manufacture advanced military technology driven by Anduril’s centralized artificial intelligence software. The weapons and weapons systems manufacturing plant will be constructed on 500 acres of land near Rickenbacker International Airport.
By pledging to create 4,008 jobs, Anduril takes the title for the largest single direct job creation by a project, held by Intel before.
That JobsOhio assistance is “based on Anduril meeting and maintaining its commitments over the next 30 years,” Nauseef wrote.
Intel made promises, too, when announcing its fabrication plants in January 2022 but has been more recently mired in its own economic downswing and a federal funding disbursement that dragged.
