U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) pointed to Friday’s opening of Hadrian’s Factory 4 in Cherokee as further evidence that Alabama is emerging as a destination for major industry investment.
In an interview with Yellowhammer News at the event, Moore said the facility speaks to the state’s fundamental strengths.
“Alabama had a land, labor and climate that was conducive to a growing economy,” Moore said. “And people are starting to realize that Alabama, we are open for business.”
The 2.2-million-square-foot facility will produce submarine components for the U.S. Navy through a $2.4 billion public-private partnership with Hadrian, an advanced manufacturing company.
The project is expected to create more than 1,000 jobs paying north of $70,000 a year.
Moore emphasized the real-world impact of the investment on Northwest Alabama.
“There’s no government program like a job,” Moore said. “These are $70,000 a year jobs to Northwest Alabama. That’s great for us.”
Moore, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-Auburn) gubernatorial campaign, said he would bring the same economic development approach he used in the state legislature to the federal level.
“When I was in the state legislature, we brought Austal, Airbus, Remington, Polaris, all those companies to Alabama, because we realize that we’ll reduce the red tape and cut the taxes,” Moore said. “We’ve got the workforce.”
“When you go to the Senate level, you just simply take that approach, and you take it to the whole state, not just to your congressional district,” he added. “The delegation has to work together, like we did with Space Command, like this, and there’ll be more of this in the future, because we have a great delegation. We’re gonna have a great governor. There’s a great opportunity for Alabama.”
Moore was among several members of the Alabama congressional delegation in attendance Friday, including Sens. Tuberville (R-Auburn) and Katie Britt (R-Montgomery), Reps. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville), Mike Rogers (R-Saks), Dale Strong (R-Huntsville), and Gary Palmer (R-Hoover). Secretary of the Navy John Phelan and Hadrian CEO Chris Power also spoke at the ceremony.
Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
