SEATTLE/HEBRON: January 31, 2017. Amazon is to invest US$1.49 billion and create over 2,000 jobs at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport (CVG) in Hebron to set up its Prime Air hub.
"We've worked hard to ensure CVG is a great place to do business and we couldn't be more pleased that Amazon recognized those efforts with plans to build a top-in-class air cargo hub at our airport," said CVG CEO Candace McGraw.
The Northern Kentucky Tri-County Economic Development Corporation (Tri-ED) said the airport would lease 900 acres to Amazon for a facility capable of handling 100 aircraft.
DHL recently completed the expansion of its hub at CVG (right) - where it employs 2,400 people - at a cost of US$108 million..
Amazon currently operates its hub from Wilmington, Ohio with leased B767 freighter aircraft from the Air Transport Services Group and Atlas Air. Amazon didn't say whether its new CVG facility would replace Wilmington however its announcement included this statement: "The company plans to offer job opportunities at any Amazon site across the U.S. to those involved in the package sortation that occurs today in Wilmington."
Dave Clark, Amazon senior vice president of Worldwide Operations said: "As we considered places for the long-term home for our air hub operations, Hebron quickly rose to the top of the list with a large, skilled workforce, centralized location with great connectivity to our nearby fulfillment locations."
The company employs over 10,000 people in 11 fulfillment centers across Kentucky. State governor Matt Bevin said the decision to locate the Prime Air hub at CVG "promises to revolutionize the fulfillment industry worldwide", and the new project would "pay dividends to both the company and our state".
The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority has agreed to provide Amazon up to US$40 million in tax incentives that will allow the company to keep a portion of its capex by meeting job and investment targets.
Steve Pendery, chair of Tri-ED, said the region would see significant benefits from the new air hub: "This is a once-in-a-generation project for our region, representing the largest capital investment announced by a private company in Northern Kentucky in the last 30 years.
"We are looking at approximately a billion-and-a-half-dollar capital investment, 2,700 jobs and infrastructure improvements that will literally transform the face of Northern Kentucky and will vault us into one of the top cargo locations in the world," he said.
"Having Amazon at CVG alongside DHL will create untold new opportunities in advanced logistics for our region," he added.
Amazon has reported a 27 percent increase in net sales last year to US$136.0 billion, compared with US$107 billion in the previous 12 months. Operating income was US$4.2 billion, up from US$2.2 billion in 2015, while net profit rose to US$2.4 billion from US$596 million in 2015.
