WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Williamson County will continue to focus on bringing new South Korean factories and businesses to Central Texas in the coming years, according to the executive director of the Williamson County Economic Development Partnership.
Dave Porter, the head of the Wilco EDP, said the county has about 17 leads on new South Korean companies that want to open shop here in Texas. This comes after Wilco sent a delegation of 16 to the country to give a seminar about how to conduct business in Williamson County to more than 100 businesses.
The future of Korean business in Wilco
Porter explained that back in April when he visited Samsung in South Korea, the company said it needed between 100 and 200 suppliers to set up in the United States to be closer to its semiconductor plant in Taylor.
After that discussion, the county decided to set up an EDP office right in South Korea to provide better access and information for Korean businesses that were thinking of opening in the United States.
Porter said the office has been a success. The companies have questions about the cost of opening a factory in the county and the amount of labor available to hire locally.
“The great thing about Williamson County is we have plenty of land,” Porter said. “We have a pro business attitude from the county to the very local level, so I think it’s a good fit for us.”
It’s not just the semiconductor industry that Wilco is looking at. Porter said it is talking with companies in the automotive, life sciences, software, and solar industries.
Porter said very soon the county will make an official announcement about a new South Korean automotive supplier factory opening in Williamson county that will manufacturer parts for Tesla. Porter also added there are early talks of another company possibly opening a U.S. headquarters in Wilco.
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