As the state’s leading economic development agency assisting businesses and communities with opportunities for legacy success, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce (Commerce) was pleased to close the books on another busy and successful year. Looking back over 2023, the agency continued to focus on supporting Oklahoma communities and businesses through expansions, programs and identification of growth opportunities. Commerce’s Business Development team reported 70% of its projects were devoted to business retention, with the other 30% representing assisting companies interested in starting operations in the state. The agency rounded out the calendar year having supported an impressive 88 economic development projects looking to expand or relocate to Oklahoma, totaling an investment to the state of $3.66 billion and the anticipated addition of more than 7,000 jobs.
“2023 was a year of tremendous growth for Oklahoma companies and communities,” said Lt. Governor and Secretary of Workforce and Economic Development Matt Pinnell. “Through Commerce-led initiatives, we supported growth in existing Oklahoma companies, the very bedrock of our economic landscape, and welcomed many new businesses to the state. It was a year that will impact Oklahoma communities for generations to come.”
Continued Support of Growth and Expansion for Legacy Companies through Commerce-designed Resources
Included in the agency’s 2023 efforts to support existing businesses are two key programs: the Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program and the Business Expansion Incentive Program.
In its third year, the Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program continues to support high-impact new capital investment across a broad range of industries to help diversify the state’s economy, leading to new product development or increase capacity at Oklahoma’s existing companies. In 2023, Commerce received 222 applications from existing Oklahoma businesses and awarded a total of $13.5 million to 179 qualifying recipients. The funding will facilitate $91.1 million in capital expenditures and the anticipated creation of 1,058 new employees with a new payroll of $63.7 million.
Additionally in 2023, Commerce, in partnership with the Oklahoma Development Finance Authority (ODFA), awarded 44 Oklahoma companies with grants from the Business Expansion Incentive Program. This program assists Oklahoma companies in making major capital investments in depreciable items like machinery, equipment and buildings. In total, Commerce awarded $62.2 million to legacy companies which represents over $786 million in total capital investments with the anticipated creation of 2,496 new jobs and an annual payroll of $138.3 million.
Investing in Infrastructure to Support Local Communities
Commerce’s SITES (Supporting Industrial Transformation and Economic Success) Program, which launched in early spring, has secured a significant boost of $178 million for infrastructure enhancements across the state. This initiative, primarily funded through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity (PREP) Fund, targets crucial site availability and preparation challenges. Eight ARPA-funded projects and 14 PREP-backed initiatives have been selected, paving the way for vital improvements on designated sites totaling $148 million in site-specific funds. Notably, an additional $29.95 million from the unallocated PREP funding has been awarded to 19 projects in 16 communities through a competitive grant process, emphasizing support for industrial parks, airports, and ports. This program reaffirms Commerce’s dedication to driving sustainable economic growth and fostering resilient communities statewide.
Additionally, in July, Commerce opened applications for the Oklahoma Strategic Industrial Development Enhancement (SIDE) Act which addresses the needs of rural industrial parks by facilitating construction of railroad infrastructure. Commerce allocated $11.8 million in tax credits to be awarded to 13 qualifying projects in the program’s first year. The tax credits will facilitate $60.8 million in capital investment and assist in 210 new jobs associated with the projects announced in 2023.
Commerce Kicks Off Talent Recruitment Campaign to Recruit Talent from North Texas
In early October, Commerce, alongside Lt. Governor Matt Pinnell, Oklahoma Secretary of Workforce and Economic Development, launched a media campaign in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan areas to recruit talent. This talent attraction campaign is building awareness of Oklahoma as a great place to live and work. By appealing to young professionals and families in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Commerce hopes to bring more skilled workforce to fill positions across Oklahoma. The campaign includes billboards, digital advertisements, commercials, social media and more.
Outreach and Education
The Oklahoma Film + Music Office (OF+MO) continued to recruit and support the state’s growing film economy. With the release of several Oklahoma-filmed productions such as Apple’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” OF+MO used this platform to bring awareness to the state’s Filmed in Oklahoma incentive. In 2023, the program helped generate an estimated $188 million in economic impact and the creation of 7,652 jobs, as well as an estimated $58 million in wages. Additionally, OF+MO’s Oklahoma Film Friendly Community Program continues to expand the resources it provides to community leaders and tribal partners. To date, 30 communities have achieved “film friendly” certification through the program since 2020.
In the fall, the Community Development division at Commerce hosted the first Weatherization Day and Job Fair. The event allowed attendees to learn about cost-saving energy efficiency and energy programs in Oklahoma with on-site demonstrations and networking opportunities with Community Action Agencies and providers. The job fair also allowed high school students an opportunity to learn about in-demand jobs in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma Main Street added nine new communities to its nationally accredited program which aims to revitalize downtowns, provide economic stimulus to communities and preserve historic landmarks and landscapes across Oklahoma.
Commerce also announced the creation of the Route 66 Grant program and began accepting applications in late 2023. With oversight provided by the Route 66 Commission, $6.6 million in legislatively appropriated funding was made available to municipalities, nonprofits and government entities located on Route 66. This unprecedented opportunity was created by the Oklahoma Legislature to revitalize and restore Oklahoma’s historic stretch of Route 66. Awards will be made in 2024 to qualifying communities.
Major Milestones and Announcements
Commerce-led economic development projects won during the year are expected to bring more than 7,000 new jobs and $3.6 billion in new investment.
Enel North America, through its affiliate 3Sun USA, LLC, announced that it had selected Inola, Okla., as the location for the company’s industrial-scale manufacturing facility for innovative, sustainable and American-made photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules. The factory, which is expected to have an annual production capacity of 3 gigawatts (GW), represents an initial investment in excess of $1 billion and is anticipated to create around 1,000 new direct permanent jobs by 2025. It is the largest economic development project in state history.
Some of the projects contributing to the year’s numbers include major announcements from the companies listed below:
Raytheon Technologies’ Pratt & Whitney announced its plans to invest $255 million through 2028 in a world-class sustainment facility.
WindShape announced plans to open an impressive 19,000 square foot cutting-edge indoor drone testing and validation facility. The announcement represented the Swiss-based company’s decision to relocate their North American headquarters to Oklahoma.
Blue Whale, a lithium-ion battery upcycling operation, chose Oklahoma for its next location. The Bartlesville facility will collect and sort used lithium batteries previously used on everything from cell phones and tablets to electric vehicles.
American Airlines, North America announced a multi-million-dollar capital investment in ongoing improvements to the company’s Tulsa location to allow for the creation of more than300 additional jobs.
Georg Fisher Central Plastics broke ground on a 150,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Shawnee, Okla. This $30 million investment is anticipated to bring 300 additional full-time jobs to the company’s existing first location.
Lastly, Commerce also celebrated the fifth anniversary of the Aerospace Commerce Economic Services (ACES) program. Established in 2018 under House Bill 2578, ACES has been a catalyst for significant economic growth, business development, workforce development and industry expansion across Oklahoma. Since the program’s inception, the ACES team at Commerce has assisted in securing more than $1.6 billion in new capital investment through 52 project wins, resulting in more than 10,000 new jobs with half of those project wins representing expansions of existing Oklahoma companies.
