Allocation Helps Finance $285 Million Project to Replace Single Cupola Furnace with Four Electric Induction Furnaces, Cutting Emissions While Boosting Capacity
LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–National New Markets Fund, LLC (“NNMF”), an affiliate of Los Angeles-based SDS Capital Group, has invested $20 million in New Markets Tax Credits (“NMTC”) to modernize furnaces at the American Cast Iron Pipe Company (ACIPCO) Manufacturing Plant in Birmingham, AL. The $285 million improvement program will create 80 to 100 full-time jobs and retain an additional 1,775 positions, bringing greater economic opportunity to surrounding communities through high-quality, high-paying jobs.
“NNMF focuses its NMTC investments on manufacturing companies that – through their growth – uplift communities navigating severe economic hurdles,” said Deborah La Franchi, Founder & CEO of SDS Capital Group and President of National New Markets Fund. “Our financial backing of this tremendous manufacturer – American Cast Iron Pipe Company – secures and creates quality employment, offering lasting stability to the generations of families who have relied on it as their economic anchor.”
American Cast Iron Pipe Company, founded in 1905 and employee-owned since 1924, is one of the nation’s largest manufacturers of ductile iron pipe, spiral-welded steel pipe, fire hydrants and valves for the waterworks industry, and high-frequency-welded steel pipe for the energy industry. The improvements will transition the company from an older, single cupola furnace to four electric coreless induction furnaces, resulting in a 25% increase in melting capacity and at least 50% reduction (105,478 metric tons) of on-site greenhouse gas emissions.
“The New Markets Tax Credits, made possible through NNMF, will help us further modernize our manufacturing operations,” said J. Michael O’Brien, President & CEO of American Cast Iron Pipe Company. “Public-private partnerships like this one support American manufacturing, allowing our companies to expand capacity to meet customers’ needs, support employment opportunities and create positive change in our communities.”
The NMTC program was created in 2000 to advance economic development in economically distressed communities by providing tax credit allocations to groups, such as NNMF, which in turn sell the credits to institutional investors and use the proceeds for high-impact projects. The NMTC program has generated $76 billion in qualified equity investment and $143 billion in total development financing to over 8,900 businesses across urban, suburban, and rural low-income communities, creating 1.2 million jobs nationwide.1
Located in North Birmingham, the ACIPCO plant has long played an important role in supporting the local economy. NNMF’s investment will serve to build on this commitment, advancing economic opportunity and workforce development for families in this area.
NNMF was launched by SDS Capital Group in 2005 to further economic development in distressed census tracts across the South and Great Lakes. Since 2013, NNMF has refined its investment strategy to invest exclusively in U.S.-based manufacturing, food processing, and agricultural-focused businesses. NNMF’s capital is used for plant expansions, equipment, machinery, and working capital, with a mission of enabling these firms to remain in the U.S. so they can continue generating high-quality jobs in distressed communities.
In December 2025, NNMF was awarded a $95 million NMTC allocation, its 15th and largest award from the U.S. Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund. This award is part of the CDFI Fund’s $10 billion 2024–2025 round, the largest allocation in the program’s history. Since inception, NNMF has invested $800.5 million across 53 projects, creating and preserving more than 15,300 jobs in census tracts with an average poverty rate of 34%.
1 https://nmtccoalition.org/advocacy-toolkit/fact-sheet/
Contacts
Bruce Beck
bruce@dbrpr.com
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