Barnes spokeswoman: Chrysler plant decision postponed

SAVANNAH, Ga. - DaimlerChrysler has postponed choosing a location for a $700 million cargo van plant that has prompted aggressive competition between Georgia and South Carolina, Gov. Roy Barnes&#39; spokeswoman said Wednesday.<br> <br> Company officials did not give the Georgia Department of Industry Trade and Tourism a timeline for when it might select a site, said Joselyn Baker, Barnes&#39; press secretary.<br> <br> &#34;The company has informed Industry and Trade that a decision has been postponed,&#34; Baker said. &#34;The state is still in contact with the company and continues to respect their confidentiality request.&#34;<br> <br> The plant would employ about 3,000 workers and would be expected to have an economic ripple effect creating thousands more jobs in communities up to 100 miles away.<br> <br> DaimlerChrysler officials have not named possible sites. Georgia has offered 1,500 acres at the intersection of Interstates 95 and 16 near Savannah. South Carolina is preparing a tract of the same size off Interstate 26 near Charleston.<br> <br> The company&#39;s board of directors met in Germany on Tuesday, but a DaimlerChrysler spokesman said no decision had been made. Another spokesman said in July he expected no decision before 2003.<br> <br>