Mumbai: Mukesh Ambani group firm Reliance Industries has acquired the polyester manufacturing facility of Unifi Kinston in  North Carolina, US for about $12.2 million. The acquisition was made through Reliance Industries USA, the company said in regulatory filing.

Reliance Industries USA will invest $215 million (about Rs900 crore) at the newly-acquired polyester facility and generate over 200 new jobs over the next five years, the release said.

Reliance Industries USA will open its first north American manufacturing facility near Kinston, North Carolina governor Michael F. Easley said in a separate statement.

"The company will create 204 jobs during the next five years and invest $ 215 million in a plant to manufacture a resin used in the production of plastic containers and specialty polyester yarns," the statement added.     

''Reliance Industries USA could get about $2.22 million in maximum benefits if it could generate jobs called for under the pact,'' according to the agreement with North Carolina department of commerce.

Reliance, which will lease part of the Lenoir county facility, plans to manufacture polyethylene terephthalate resin and speciality polyester yarns there.

The plant has a flexible facility and the Lenoir county offers skilled workforce and training facilities and a ready market as also state and local incentives that will help offset the high cost of establishing a major manufacturing facility, Reliance Industries USA president Thakur Sharma said.

Unifi Kinston, a wholly owned subsidiary of Unifi Inc, expects a gain of about $6.9 million from the asset sale, after meeting expenses of breaking off from its manufacturing alliance with DuPont.

Unifi Kinston will pay $3.6 million to DuPont as part of the severance charges.

The sale is also subject to customary due diligence and closing procedures and Unifi Kinston expects the acquisition to close by the first half of its fiscal 2009.