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NORMAL (25News Now) - Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Rivian have announced an $827 million 30-year incentive package for the company to expand its manufacturing plant and hire more workers. A majority of that funding is coming from Reimagining Energy and Vehicles in Illinois tax credits with a focus on workforce development. "We are taking a tremendous step forward - for our electric vehicle ecosystem, for our economy, and for our state," said Governor JB Pritzker. "This partnership brings significant investment in the Illinois workforce - including another manufacturing training academy, a dual credit apprenticeship program for high school students, and further support through the Employer Training Investment Program." "Not only are we creating the jobs of the future, we are providing Illinoisans the skills they need to fill them," he said. The agreement specifies the retention of at least 6,000 jobs throughout the entirety of the agreement period. Rivian's investment in the local plant is $1.5 billion, which would expand the plant's total production capacity to 215,000 vehicles per year, with a focus on the new R2 SUV. At least 550 new, full-time jobs will be created over the next five years, said Pritzker. "They're growing now, and they had the opportunity to grow in Georgia or in Illinois. We wanted them to stay right here and create jobs here," Gov. Pritzker said. "That was why we created an incentive, or rather, why we put an incentive package together and made that offer to Rivian." Rivian selected its facility for the expansion because of competitive incentives and state support for the project as well as Illinois' strong workforce, superior infrastructure, and access to suppliers. "We are grateful for this investment from the State of Illinois and for the leadership of Governor Pritzker, President Harmon, and Speaker Welch," said RJ Scaringe, Rivian Founder and Chief Executive Officer. "The support from the state will allow us to quickly bring our midsize SUV, R2, to market and provide even greater consumer choice for EVs." Pending an executed agreement, Rivian will receive Invest in Illinois funding in the amount of $75 million in capital funding to the company. The fund was signed into law in early 2023 to make Illinois more attractive when vying for large projects in highly competitive sectors like clean energy. Once the agreement is executed it will be posted online. The state will also fund a second manufacturing training academy in Normal at the expanded Rivian facility. With the help of a grant from the Employer Training Investment Program (ETIP), high school students will be able to enter in a dual-credit apprenticeship program at Rivian. You can watch 25News - any newscast, anywhere - streaming LIVE on 25NewsNow.com, our 25News mobile app, and on our WEEK 25News SmartTV streaming app. Learn more about how you can get connected to 25News streaming live news here. Copyright 2024 WEEK. All rights reserved.