FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO):  The chief strategy officer for the Indiana Economic Development Corp. says the outlook for the northeast Indiana region is “exceptionally strong.”

Ann Lathrop joined Indiana Secretary of Commerce David Rosenberg for a fireside chat at Tuesday’s Engage Northeast Indiana event in Fort Wayne and says that she expects the region to continue to build on its prior success and investments. Lathrop told Inside INdiana Business during the event, that she believes northeast Indiana is primed to take advantage of the growing electric vehicle supplier market.

“This area is uniquely situated between the New Carlisle plant with GM and Samsung SDI, as well as Kokomo which Stellantis and Samsung SDI, I think to really attract the great supplier base that is going to be coming with this new industry that we’ve attracted here to the state of Indiana,” Lathrop said.

Additionally, Lathrop said the fiber optic line that runs through Fort Wayne will be a game changer for the region. She said it’s one of the few lines that can process financial transactions as it runs from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to New York.