FILE - University System of Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue, right, presents a trophy to Augusta University President Brooks Keel in recognition of AU's enrollment growth for the summer 2023 semester at the Board of Regents meeting, Aug. 8, 2023.

Augusta University generated $2.94 billion for the Peach State economy in 2022, according to a new report from the University System of Georgia.

The report totals the impact of the university and AU Health, which between them employ 21,250. The impact is not entirely localized to the Augusta region. The Medical College of Georgia partnership and clinical campuses across the state contribute almost $50 million of the total.

“Augusta University and AU Health are not only leaders in education, research and patient care, we are also proud of the economic impact our campuses provide in the Augusta region and throughout Georgia,” AU President Brooks Keel was quoted as saying in a news release.

The impact for Augusta is significant, though.

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"Having a major university is always a plus for economic development," said Cal Wray, president of the Augusta Economic Development Authority.

A well-trained workforce is one of the keys to economic development, Wray said, and AU's growth plan to expand is only going to help economic development in the region.

Augusta University was one of eight USG institutions to see an increased enrollment last year, out of 26 institutions across the state. At a recent Board of Regents meeting, USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue recognized Keel for AU's 6.8% increase in enrollment over the summer semester, the highest out of the four research universities in the system.

USG as a whole had a $20.1 billion output in fiscal year 2022, supporting 159,034 full- and part-time jobs, according to the report.

There may also be some major capitol projects coming from the university in the coming year.

AU Health is finalizing a deal with the Wellstar Health system that will include the construction of a new hospital in Columbia County. In July, the Columbia County commission approved a contract with the Hospital Authority to issue $375 million in bonds that the new health system will be responsible for.

On Tuesday, the Augusta commission approved a re-issuance of a 2018 and 2020 bond for AU Health through AEDA. According to Wray, this bond involved no new money and just transferred the bond to the new AU-Wellstar entity.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Augusta University, AU Health bring billions to Georgia