Precision automotive parts manufacturer Kongsberg Automotive announced today that it will expand its operations in a new facility in Easley, investing $7.3 million and adding 300 new jobs.

An enthusiastic crowd of Pickens County officials and members of the business community gathered at Tri County Technical College Tuesday morning to celebrate another major milestone in the Pickens County employment situation.

With a lingering 9.1 percent unemployment rate, many were feeling positive about the investment Kongsberg Automotive will make in the county over the next five years.

"The bottom line is we could have lost 100 jobs, we could have lost an existing business," Pickens County Council Chairwoman Jennifer Willis said. "Instead we've retained 100 jobs, we've retained an existing business and we're adding 300 jobs."

Kongsberg Automotive saw an immediate need to expand its operations due to projected growth and would have been unable to do so at the current Pickens location.

"We've been through probably four different scenarios with buildings," Willis said.

When Confluence Watersports announced a move to a Greenville County location, Willis said officials proposed the Powdersville Road location as an ideal location.

Space wasn't the only incentive for the growing manufacturer. The county has offered a generous economic development agreement which includes a fee in lieu of tax for a 10-year period, Willis said. Calculated fee figures were not available Tuesday morning.

The manufacturer will also receive job credits from the state that will pay for employee training at Tri-County Technical College.

"Kongsberg has been an important part of Pickens County," Tri-County Technical College President Ronnie Booth said in a statement. "Most new jobs are created by existing industry and we see yet another example of that today."

The company had considered other locations in the U.S. and Mexico but because the Bill Masters facility currently occupied by Confluence Watersports would be available soon, the company decided to stay put.

"This expansion will help our plant remain competitive and meet increasing customer demand," Kongsberg Automotive Plant Manager Matt Mckinnon said in a statement. "Pickens County has provided us with an excellent business environment in which to operate."

The company plans to begin hiring for the new positions in January 2012. Anyone interested in job opportunities with the company should contact Liberty One Stop at that time.