CONVENT - The governor's office announced Friday that a new billion-dollar plant is being built along the Mississippi River in St. James Parish.

According to the announcement, Wanhua Chemical Group has chose Convent as the site of a $1.25 billion chemical manufacturing complex. The 250-acre manufacturing site will be developed at the northwest corner of the intersection of Louisiana Highways 3125 and 3214, on the east bank of the Mississippi River.

The project will create 170 new direct jobs with an average annual salary of more than $80,000, plus benefits. The project is also expected to generate 1,000 construction jobs at peak activity, with work expected to begin in 2019.

Wanhua will leverage its $1.25 billion capital investment to produce MDI, or methylene diphenyl diisocyanate. MDI is commonly used for polyurethane automotive parts, foams and elastomers, with applications in such consumer areas as appliances, electronics, spray-foam insulation, furniture, textiles and footwear.