SAMSUNG | WILLIAMSON COUNTY
Williamson County Commissioners Court members this week unanimously approved a partial tax abatement to a South Korean supplier of Taylor’s Samsung semiconductor plant in anticipation of a $600 million development.
Soulbrain Holdings Co. Ltd., a manufacturer of phosphoric acid key in the making of semiconductor chips, secured the incentive to spur construction starting this year. Commissioners approved the measure at their regular meeting on Tuesday after economic development officials extolled the project.
The 10-year agreement calls for a 25% abatement of taxable value over the course of two development phases.
According to a county document, the minimum taxable value for each phase is $100 million over the 10-year period. The so-called Chapter 312 incentives agreement
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applies only to taxes paid to the county’s maintenance-andoperations fund.
County Judge Bill Gravell — returning to the dais after having visited South Korea to help spur additional business — praised the project, saying it ultimately amounts to taxable value of at least $600 million. The abatement is the latest set of economic inducements to the company following previous agreements passed by the Taylor City Council and the Taylor Economic Development Corp. for the acid plant to be built on an 85-acre tract at the RCR Taylor Logistics Park.
“The tax abatement calls for abating less than $2 million back to Soulbrain but would provide Williamson County $18 million,” Ben White, president and CEO of the Taylor Economic Development Corp., said ahead of the commissioners’ vote. “If you could give up less than $2 and get $18 in return, that’s a tremendous investment in the community.”
Added Dave Porter, executive director for the Williamson County Economic Development Partnership: “This is a critical component for Samsung.'
Soulbrain will be located close to Samsung Austin Semiconductor, which is under construction in southwest Taylor.
Porter noted the semiconductor plant is not Soulbrain’s sole client.
“They can supply other semiconductors throughout the country with their chemicals. This really does add to the ecosystem and help build Williamson County as the next hub for semiconductors,” he added.
Porter noted he and other officials had worked with Soulbrain executives for the past 18 months to find a site for the plant. The selected site at the RCR Taylor Logistics Park is already zoned for the use, he added.
Company agrees to certain conditions
According to a county document, Soulbrain agreed to certain conditions in securing the abatement — including a staff of at least 50 by the end of a five-year period. From the first to the fifth year of the agreement, the company must have 3, 8, 17, 23 and 39 employees as stated in the document. Should the number of workers fall short in any given year, the company would not be in default if the levels can be brought back up in a 90-day period, per the agreement.
The company also agreed to hire a diverse workforce with an emphasis on recruiting workers in Williamson County. Moreover, company officials have agreed to extend internship opportunities to county students.
“Also in the agreement is a requirement for them to participate in internships for our high schoolers, not just in Taylor but for Williamson County schools,” White said.
White noted the impact the plant would have goes far beyond the borders of Williamson County, including at the Department of Defense.
“These chips are being used in everything we use, and the defense department is heavily reliant on these chips being produced,” he said. “It’s a large project, not just for Taylor but for this country.”
Safety, infrastructure concerns arise
Yet not everybody was as bullish on the project as county officials. One resident who signed up to address commissioners, Bill Kelberlau of Georgetown, expressed concern over the acid manufacturing to take place at Soulbrain’s plant.
He also noted that vast amounts of water and electricity will be needed for the site.
“It’s going to require water and electricity — large amounts of it,” he said of the envisioned plant. “This brings to mind history — people need to learn from history — because it goes back to Bhopal, India, where Union Carbide had a plant that developed a gas leak. The courts determined it was negligence.”
Kelberlau was referring to an incident in 1984 centered on a pesticide plant that leaked some 40 tons of methyl isocyanate gas that resulted in the deaths of up to 20,000 people and injured half-a-million residents. Surviving victims were beset with chronic respiratory and immune system illnesses, eye irritation or blindness and neurological impairments, according to media reports at the time.
Closer to home, he focused on the envisioned Soulbrain plant: “This is a very dangerous chemical,” he said of the phosphoric acid to be produced at the plant. “Low levels can irritate the eyes and respiratory tracts; high levels can cause death or permanent injury. These chemicals are very dangerous, and can cause permanent scarring tissue in lungs.”
Kelberlau questioned the selected location for the plant, not far from Hutto and Taylor: “Plants like this need to be out in the open, away from high populations. We’re putting a million people at risk when this plant gets in production — citizens of Williamson County — for the sake of 50 jobs?”
According to the National Library of Medicine, phosphoric acid is a colorless, odorless phosphorous-containing inorganic acid that is considered toxic and corrosive. Inhalation, ingestion or skin contact could lead to severe injury or death, according to the site.
Prior to a vote on the matter, Precinct 1 Commissioner Terry Cook briefly allayed concerns by explaining efforts to be ready for emergencies at the plant by the time it’s built.
“Williamson County is being hit with manufacturing sites, which could represent health and safety issues,” she said in reference to the brisk pace of development spurred by the Samsung plant. “The respective fire departments are stepping up. We’re getting there; we’ll be prepared by the time they’re manufacturing.”
For his part, Gravell focused on exponential expansion of the property tax base in voicing his support. He noted the total appraised value of the Kalahari Resorts in Round Rock of some $500 million — $100 million less than the expected assessed value of the Soulbrain development.
“According to last year’s appraised values in Williamson County, the thirdlargest taxpayer was the Kalahari project with somewhere just north of $500 million in total appraised value,” Gravell said. “So today, we’re talking about a project that’s just over 600 million U.S. dollars without a lot of fanfare and the reality is it could be, overnight, one of the largest projects in the county.”
Once discussion ended, Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles motioned for approval of the tax-abatement agreement with Gravell seconding. All commissioners voiced their OK.
