In December 2012, the city of Pensacola was about to announce a lease agreement with Offshore Inland when the mayor kicked the deal back to the Greater Pensacola Chamber because he thought the terms were too generous.
Fast forward to March of this year, Mayor Ashton Hayward sent to the city council what was essentially the same one he rejected 15 months earlier. The council approved it and Hayward executed in May. Today we got the press conference.
Mayor Hayward said that Offshore Inland Marine & Oilfield Services will creating up to 200 new jobs. It has joined forces with DeepFlex to establish a new unbonded flexible pipe manufacturing and qualification testing facility at the Port of Pensacola. The facility, which is expected to be fully operational by the second half of 2015, will produce up to 62 miles of the specialized pipe per year.
“Two and a half years ago, I set out a new vision for our Port, designed to position it to better compete in a changing global marketplace and to be an economic engine for our region,” Mayor Hayward said. “We are beginning to see results.”
The OIMO/DeepFlex complex will be comprised of a heavily-renovated existing Port warehouse plus new buildings and infrastructure built on up to 31Ž2 acres of undeveloped Port land. The pipe produced at the facility will leave the Port as cargo either by truck, rail, barge, cargo ship or direct load-out to subsea pipe-laying vessels calling at Offshore Inland’s existing Gulf of Mexico Offshore & Subsea Support Services Center on the west side of the Port. As such, in addition to rent, it will generate income through the various cargo and vessel fees normally associated with Port activity.
The city press release did share some of the credit with the chamber, state, UWF, Gulf Power and Escambia County:
The Greater Pensacola Chamber helped the companies navigate the site selection process as well as available local, regional, and state incentives. Cooperation among several other local, regional, and state partners – including the Office of Governor Rick Scott, Enterprise Florida, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, the Florida Department of Transportation, and Escambia County – was also instrumental in facilitating the project. The project was also supported by two special regional initiatives: Gulf Power Company’s Job Creation Rate Incentive, which offers discounts to new and existing customers who add jobs, capital investments and new electrical loads to the region; and the Industry Recruitment, Retention and Expansion Fund, a regional economic development initiative administered by the University of West Florida and appropriated by the state legislature.
The lease agreement is a big deal for the Port of Pensacola. Mayor Hayward’s “vision” –while momentarily sidetracked–has resulted in a great new tenant for the port. Congratulations should also go to Buddy McCormick with Offshore, Brice Harris at UWF and Scott Luth with the chamber for keeping this project on track and ensuring that Offshore Inland did not take this facility elsewhere. Their patience and commitment were keys to this deal being done.