500 relocations plan
About this good practice
The Grand Est region in France has announced a comprehensive plan to relocate 500 businesses by 2028, aiming to fortify local production, reduce dependency on foreign suppliers, and enhance regional employment. This initiative responds to the vulnerabilities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the need for economic sovereignty. It encompasses financial and logistical support for companies, the identification of appropriate industrial zones, and the development of workforce skills. The region will prioritize sectors such as green technologies and advanced manufacturing, leveraging existing strengths to ensure sustainable growth.
To facilitate this, the region will collaborate with local authorities, business associations, and academic institutions. A dedicated monitoring committee will track the progress of relocations and ensure that the targets are met. The initiative also includes efforts to simplify administrative procedures, promote innovation, and attract new investments. The overarching goal is to create a resilient and self-sufficient regional economy, capable of withstanding future global disruptions and fostering long-term development.
The main tool of this plan revolve around the turnkey industrial location that the Region wants to promote to facilitate access to ecopnomic for foreign investement. The initiative is called Sta'Est and is reponsible for the development of these turnkey location.
Resources needed
• 1 person coordinating the database of industrial location and their availability.
• A contracted consulting firm to evaluate the relevance regarding the turnkey site criteria (ranking of the various locations to promote the best ones)
Evidence of success
Quantitative
• 54 industrial turnkey locations identified.
• 17 premium locations
• 24 rating criteria to assess the attractiveness and maturity of each site
Qualitative:
• Improvements in the shared knowledge of industrial locations throughout the region.
• Dense and reliable information network gathered regarding territorial economic data
Potential for learning or transfer
The basic idea behind the 500 relocation plan is to identify its territory as an industrial location with the potential for expansion. Once it is done, the sites need to be evaluated in a way such that it enables the regional authority to choose which site will be the premium offer to develop the economic and industrial future of the territory.