UPDATE 1-Foxconn sharply scales back Wisconsin investment

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By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) - Taiwanese contract electronics manufacturer Foxconn Technology Co Ltd will dramatically scale back its planned investment in a Wisconsin plant, under an agreement announced with the state's governor on Tuesday.

Wisconsin will reduce its tax credits authorized for the project from $2.85 billion to $80 million as Foxconn reduces its planned investment from $10 billion to $672 million and cuts the number of jobs planned from 13,000 to 1,454, Governor Tony Evers said in a statement. The investment was first announced at the White House in July 2017, when Donald Trump was president.

The 20-million-square-foot campus marked the largest investment in U.S. history for a brand new location by a foreign-based company when it was announced. It was praised by Trump as proof of his ability to revive American manufacturing.

Foxconn initially planned to manufacture advanced large-screen displays for TVs and other consumer and professional products at the facility, which is under construction.

It later said it would build smaller Generation 6 LCD screens instead and Trump stopped discussing the Foxconn investment on trips to Wisconsin.

Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Evers said that the new agreement negotiated between the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and Foxconn will save Wisconsin taxpayers "a total of $2.77 billion compared to the previous contract, maintain accountability measures requiring job creation to receive incentives, and protect hundreds of millions of dollars in local and state infrastructure investments made in support of the project."

Evers said Foxconn is eligible to receive up to $80 million in performance-based tax credits over six years if it meets employment and capital investment targets.

The original Wisconsin package also included local tax incentives and road and highway investments by state and local governments, which brought total taxpayer-funded subsidies to more than $4 billion. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler and Dan Grebler)