Caterpillar has officially chosen a U.S. site for its next new manufacturing plant. The company announced Friday it will build a 200-million dollar facility near Athens, Georgia. The plant is expected to employ 1400 people when fully operational.

Caterpillar in November announced plans to shift production from Japan to a new plant in North America to produce small tractors and excavators. The company said it wanted to move production of the equipment closer to its customers in North America and Europe.

Peoria County as well as other Illinois sites were vying for the project to be located in their communities. However Cat officials sited concerns about logistics and doing business in the state as reasons Illinois was not considered. They say the Athens location was chosen due to its proximity to the major ports of Savannah and Charleston, a strong regional base of potential suppliers, a positive pro-active business climate and a good pool of potential employees with manufacturing experience. Construction is expected to begin early this year with the goal of opening in late 2013.