Volvo->ke188 just recently announced its intentions to build its first-ever U.S. production facility, and the Swedish automaker has just announced that the plant will be in South Carolina. The plant will be in Berkeley County, just north of Charleston, and while no exact location was revealed, the facility will most likely be located along the western edge of the county, close to Interstate 26.

Construction will begin this fall, with cars rolling off the assembly line by 2018, but Volvo has not said which product (or products) it plans to build in South Carolina. The best bet would be the popular S60->ke413 or one of the two crossovers->ke288 that Volvo offers. When the plant goes online, Volvo says that it will initially have the capacity to build about 100,000 units each year, including those for export.

There is no word as to how many people the plant will initially employ, but Volvo has a “longer term” plan to employ 4,000 people. Add in the additional five to seven jobs that Volvo says will be created outside the plant by outside companies and suppliers, and South Carolina’s employment rate will probably see a pleasant spike over the next several years.

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Why it matters

The new plant will be part of a $500 million investment with a “medium term” goal of selling 100,000 vehicles in the U.S., which is part of a broader plan to double global sales. This will mark Volvo’s fifth assembly plant, with two currently operating in Europe and two more in China.

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