Key investments in region

The biggest business projects planned in the Chattanooga region:

1 VOLKSWAGEN — Auto assembly plant in Chattanooga. The $1 billion facility will employ 2,000 employees and is expected to generate 9,477 other indirect jobs at suppliers and related businesses.

2 WATTS BAR NUCLEAR PLANT — TVA is adding a second reactor to the plant near Spring City by 2013 at a cost of $2.5 billion. The construction project will employ about 3,000 workers and the extra unit will add about 150 jobs to the plant.

3 WACKER CHEMIE AG — Maker of polycrystaline silicon, used in solar panels, will build a $1.2 billion plant in Bradley County that will employ 500 workers.

4 GESTAMP — Structural component manufacturer for the automotive industry is building a $90 million plant in Chattanooga that will employ 230 workers over the next three years.

5 IVC GROUP INC. — Belgium flooring manufacturer is building a $70 million plant in Dalton, Ga., that will employ 115 workers.

Sources: Tri-State Regional Workforce Alliance study of emerging sectors. National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center, Mississippi State University.

— Compiled by staff writer Dave Flessner, dflessner@timesfreepress.com