LEBANON, VA – MARCH 3, 2025 – Twenty-one new projects and three expansions resulting in the combined projected creation and retention of 487 full- and part-time jobs and $18.86 million in planned private investment were announced in the region during 2024, according to details highlighted in the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA) 2024 Annual Report filed last Friday with Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and the Virginia General Assembly.
The new projects announced are projected to create 199 full-time and 80 part-time jobs and to create $5,387,526 in private investment. The three expansion projects announced are projected to create and retain 208 full-time jobs and to create $13,480,000 in private investment.
VCEDA was formed by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988 to enhance and diversify the economy of the seven-county, one-city coalfield region of Southwest Virginia, which includes the counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell and Wise and the City of Norton. Since VCEDA was formed, the region has seen the creation of tens of thousands of jobs, billions in private investment, the economic diversity index of the region has improved by more than 250 percent and the region’s unemployment rate has been cut by at least half.
“As always, the successes of 2024 were possible because of the region’s team approach toward economic development,” said VCEDA Executive Director/General Counsel Jonathan Belcher. “VCEDA and its economic development allies work toward a common goal for the betterment of the region and it is this team approach that will continue to be critical as the region perseveres in its challenge to enhance and diversify the economy of the coalfields of Virginia.”
Important projects announced during the year in the region included the location of WRAP Technologies to Norton, projecting 126 new full-time jobs. In 2024, VCEDA closed a $3.16 million loan to the Norton Industrial Development Authority to help construct a facility for WRAP Technologies. Simmons Equipment Company also announced a major expansion of its operations to Lebanon, VA, projecting 75 new full-time jobs and $8.48 million in private investment, which was assisted by a $500,000 loan and a $187,500 grant approved by VCEDA. VFP, Inc., which VCEDA has assisted with several expansions, announced it was expanding again in 2024 in Scott County and adding 50 new jobs; and Bird Dog Distributors, recruited by VCEDA to Dickenson County a decade ago, announced an expansion projecting 43 new jobs.
In 2024, VCEDA approved 37 loans and grants for $13,342,233 in new VCEDA funding. Funding was approved for projects in all seven counties in the VCEDA region and are projected to help create or retain 192 full-time and 80 part-time jobs and to generate $7,107,526 in private investment.
A total of 42 approved loans and grants were closed by VCEDA in 2024 totaling more than $9.11 million and projecting 558 new and retained full-time jobs, 157 part-time jobs, and $33.768 million in private investment.
Twenty new business start-ups in the region were supported by grants in 2024 from VCEDA’s Seed Capital Matching Fund program. Combined, they project a total of 73 full-time and 80 part-time jobs. Since the seed capital program was created in 2017, a total of 204 businesses have been approved for funding, creating 717 full- and part-time jobs to date. Total private investment by these businesses in a five-year period is projected to be $11.97 million.
A February 2021 study of the Seed Capital Matching Fund completed by Virginia Tech’s Center for Economic & Community Engagement found that the VCEDA seed capital program had a very high return on VCEDA’s investment of approximately 34:1. The study also found VCEDA has played a critical role in the development of small businesses and in support of entrepreneurship in the region.
VCEDA continued to promote the region economically as Southwest Virginia’s e-Region through marketing and business development in 2024, participating in 33 outreach marketing events throughout the year.
Another milestone achieved during the year was the securing of federal funding needed to complete the sections of the Coalfields Expressway from Grundy, VA to Buchanan County’s Southern Gap development as a four-lane highway, which is scheduled to fully open by 2027. The funding was obtained with the assistance of the region’s federal legislators and the Virginia Coalfields Expressway Authority, for which VCEDA provides staff support. The Buchanan County Board of Supervisors allocated the match funding required for the project. The Coalfields Expressway is deemed a critical component in the economic development future of Southwest Virginia. The first miles of the Coalfields Expressway in Virginia opened in 2023.
“VCEDA is committed to its mission and crucial role in helping to diversify the region’s economy,” said VCEDA Chairman J.P. Richardson. “We look forward to continuing to work together to help our region diversify and grow.”
Members of the VCEDA Board include Richardson as chairman; Greg Edwards, vice chairman; Troy Nichols, secretary; Brian Hess, treasurer; and Barbara Altizer; Sonny Ciampanella; Sim Ewing; Chris Hall; Matthew Hill; Andy Hrovatic; Gerald Lawson; Duane Miller; Shanna Plaster; Roger Rife; Tim Stuller; and Scotty Wampler.
A copy of the full annual report may be found at https://www.vceda.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2024-VCEDA-Annual-Report-FINAL.pdf.
About Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority and Southwest Virginia’s e-Region: The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988 to enhance and diversify the region’s economy and help create jobs, markets Southwest Virginia’s e-Region and its focus on electronic information technology, energy, education, emerging technologies, and entrepreneurship. VCEDA is a unique economic development organization that manages funds for economic development projects from a percentage of the coal and natural gas severance taxes paid by coal and natural gas companies that operate in the region. Located in southwestern Virginia, the region includes Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise counties and the City of Norton. www.vceda.us or www.e-Region.org.