Details have begun to emerge on the incentives that will be offered to Airbus as it builds a new jet assembly line in Mobile, including $4 million in cash from the city and an equal amount from Mobile County.

That $8 million, plus an unknown value in tax abatements and fee waivers, is spelled out in a project agreement on Tuesday's Mobile City Council agenda. While the council will have the option of immediate action, normal procedure will be for it to lay the measure over for a week's consideration before voting.

Meanwhile, a county spokesperson confirmed that the Mobile County Commission will consider its approval of the measure at its discussion meeting this Thursday for a presumed vote at its regular meeting on Jan. 14.

Airbus already has an assembly line for its A320 family jets at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley. It produces four of the jets per month and has delivered more than 100 of them since going into operation. The company plans to break ground in the near future for an assembly line building the smaller, newer A220 family of passenger jets. Company officials have said they intend to begin delivering the new jets from Mobile in 2020.

The Project Agreement pegs the "total capital investment" of building the new assembly line at $210 million, and sets a target of 432 employees.

City commitments spelled out in the agreement include $4 million in reimbursement "for capital expenses incurred in developing, constructing, and equipping the A220 Project." That money is allocated in installments of $400,000 per year over 10 years.

The agreement calls for the city to support an abatement of noneducational construction related sales and use taxes “until the entire A220 Project has been placed in service,” and “the noneducational portion of all ad valorem taxes for a period of ten (10) years.” The estimated value of that abatement is not spelled out in the agreement.

County commitments in the agreement include a similar provision for $4 million in reimbursement over 10 years. The agreement also indicates that the Mobile County revenue commissioner has provided a letter certifying that “A220 Project improvements owned by MAA [Mobile Airport Authority] will not be subject to ad valorem taxes.”

The city and the county also agree to help with speedy processing of permit applications and, to whatever extent possible, to waive "all of its respective administrative, licensing and permitting fees or charges otherwise payable by the Company, MAA, or any contractor retained by MAA or the Company" for the project.

The incentives are "based, in part, on the estimated economic impact that will be realized from the Company's capital investment, additional payroll and jobs created by the A220 Project." It goes on to spell out that the incentives are contingent on Airbus meeting its commitments, including a requirement to show proof that it is meeting its employment target of 432 jobs by June 30, 2021. (The fine print actually requires the company to demonstrate that it met 90 percent of the requirement in one year to receive the full $400,000 in the next. If the company shows that it has met somewhere between 50 percent and 90 percent of the target, the reimbursements will be prorated accordingly.)

David Rodgers, vice president for economic development for the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, said the potential value of the local tax abatements hasn’t yet been calculated because officials are waiting on Airbus to give them a breakdown of its expected investment. When that comes in, he said, “our office will provide a recommendation to the Industrial Development Board (IDB) on potential abatements for the company based on a cost benefit analysis.”

A list of other Airbus commitments includes one that the company will "use its good faith best efforts to develop one or more apprenticeship and training programs to introduce current and newly-graduated students and/or adults with little or no formal skills or training to the manufacturing experience."

The Project Agreement does not address incentives being offered by the state. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Angela Till said Monday that the state is working on its own economic development package, but that she could not reveal its terms because "the project agreement has not been finalized."

Finalization is expected in the next week, she said.

Kristi Tucker, director of communications for Airbus Americas, deferred comment on the total value of the incentives to the various entities providing them.

That incentives would be offered was a given, even though Airbus announced the project without first negotiating them. Opposition seems unlikely, given that the agenda item is sponsored "by Mayor Stimpson and the City Council."

Airbus announced out of the blue in October 2017 that a new partnership with Bombardier likely would lead to a new assembly line in Mobile. By July 2018, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson said that even though Airbus had committed unilaterally, the city and other governmental entities expected to help with construction incentives, infrastructure development and workforce development.

"They would love to have the support of the city, the county and the state, and there will be something that we do have to do to facilitate that," Stimpson said then. "And that all will be forthcoming once Airbus is finally finished working out the details with the state."

In September 2018 Jeff Knittel, the chairman and CEO of Airbus Americas, confirmed that incentive discussions were under way. "We are working with local and state governments, who have been terrific partners, and we would expect that there will be some incentives as we go forward," Knittel said.

The development of Airbus' existing production facility in Mobile was facilitated by state and local incentives with a total estimated value of more than $158 million.

The incentive agreement is not the only Airbus-related item on Tuesday's Mobile City Council agenda. A separate item calls for the city to commit $150,000 per year to Flight Works Alabama, a nonprofit educational institution that is a joint venture between Airbus and the state. To open later this year, it will function as an aerospace learning center, worker training center and even a tourist attraction.

That agreement specifies that the city’s contribution, if approved, will fund field trips and educational programs for city students.

Note: this story was updated at 2 p.m. with comment from David Rodgers of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce.