Office of the Governor: Volkswagen Group of America Selects Chattanooga Location

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

July 15, 2008

Governor Phil Bredesen and other government officials today joined Stefan Jacoby, president and CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, for an event to announce Volkswagen has selected Chattanooga, Tenn., as the site of the company’s manufacturing operations for the U.S. market.

“I’m enormously pleased by the announcement from Volkswagen Group of American and grateful for the company’s investment in Chattanooga and in the people of Tennessee,” said Bredesen. “I believe Volkswagen chose Tennessee because of our shared values, our commitment to innovation and our strong respect for the environment. This project will have a significant impact on the economy of Tennessee and the region for decades to come.”

Volkswagen will invest more than $1 billion to build a state-of-the-art assembly facility at the Enterprise South Industrial Park creating more than 2,000 jobs. The company will build the facility in the Enterprise South Industrial Park, 12 miles northeast of downtown Chattanooga. Initial production capacity for the facility is anticipated to be 150,000 vehicles. Production is scheduled to begin in early 2011.

The Governor and Jacoby were joined at the Hunter Museum of American Art in Chattanooga today by ECD Commissioner Matt Kisber, U.S. Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, Congressman Zach Wamp, Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey and Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield.