XO.STEEL, LLC will locate a manufacturing plant in Old Fort, North Carolina. The company plans to create 30 new jobs and invest $350,000 over the next three years in McDowell County.

The company, which produces an advanced surface application which prevents corrosion and protects mild steel, has initial plans to construct an 8,000 square foot manufacturing facility in rural McDowell County, with expansion options to ultimately increase the facility to more than 24,000 square feet. Raw material will be processed, manufactured, palletized and shipped to end users globally. Operations will begin in the second quarter of 2014.

“In determining a location for our manufacturing facility, the adjacency to I-40 and a skilled and a ready-to-work labor force made Old Fort ideal. Our products will be exported worldwide, and while locating the plant at a large port would have made better sense logistically, the leadership teams from McDowell County Economic Foundation, Advantage West and North Carolina Department of Commerce leadership teams worked hard to demonstrate the significant advantages of a well-trained and committed workforce right here at home,” said John McEntire, Plant Supervisor and a fourth-generation McDowell County native.

“We’ve created an atmosphere of job creation, growth and investment for innovative companies,” said Governor Pat McCrory. "This new steel coatings business will provide job opportunities to keep talented workers in McDowell County.”

The project was made possible in part by a performance-based grant from the One North Carolina Fund of up to $90,000. The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. These grants also require and are contingent upon local matches.

Partners that helped with this project include: the N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Community Colleges, McDowell Technical Community College, McDowell County and The McDowell Economic Development Association, Inc.