Southern Research seeking up to $5M from city for program

Posted on by Michael Randle

Southern Research plans to develop a unique public health data system program to connect personalized medical data, including genomic, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and other forms of data to clinical data to support public health.

The program is expected to create over 50 new jobs over the next five years.

And the Birmingham-based organization is going before the Birmingham City Council with a request for a program funding agreement to help with the effort.

If approved, the city will support the program by allocating funding received from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 in an amount not to exceed $5 million.

The Birmingham City Council will consider the agreement at its regular council meeting on March 19.

In January, Southern Research opened a new biotechnology commercialization hub to support the city’s growing biotech community in a space on its campus on Birmingham’s Southside. Birmingham-headquartered Brasfield & Gorrie completed renovations ahead of Station 41’s opening, which includes wet lab space, office space, shared lab equipment and services to support biotech startup growth for up to 12 companies.

This move follows Birmingham’s recent designation as one of 31 regions across the country as a federal Tech Hub.

Birmingham Business Journal

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Editorial: Louisiana poised to lead the latest energy boom: renewables

Posted on by Michael Randle

The worldwide energy crisis triggered by climate change and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also created unprecedented demand for renewable power sources. The International Energy Agency, an autonomous intergovernmental organization that tracks and forecasts global energy trends, predicts the world will add as much renewable power in the next five years as it did in the past 20.

That surge in demand will, in turn, create enormous opportunities for regions that already have strategic locations, natural resources and embedded industries that align with new technologies created to meet that demand.

If that narrative sounds vaguely familiar to folks in south Louisiana, it should. It’s the same scenario that catapulted our state onto the world stage as a leader in energy research, development and production back in the 1970s.

Otherwise known hereabouts as the Oil Boom.

NOLA.com

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With Green Energy, Louisiana Group Looks to Be Next Silicon Valley

Posted on by Michael Randle

In 1901, the twin oil discoveries of the historic Spindletop well in Beaumont, Texas, and Louisiana’s first successful well in a Jennings rice field paved the way for the growth of an energy industry that modernized the Gulf South.

More than 120 years later, a consortium of Louisiana colleges, universities, governments and businesses has hopes of being the catalyst for the next leap forward in energy, turning the state into a new “Silicon Valley” for the transition away from fuels and industrial processes believed to contribute to climate change.

Known as the Future Use of Energy in Louisiana, or FUEL, the new consortium will be funded primarily, at first, through what could be the largest grant ever offered by the U.S. National Science Foundation — $160 million over 10 years if the consortium meets its benchmarks and Congress fully funds the program.

Government Technology

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Frozen Mexican food behemoth opens new HQ in Frisco

Posted on by Michael Randle

A manufacturer of frozen Mexican food has opened its new headquarters at an emerging mixed-use business park in Frisco, where it will ultimately employ more than 100 people.

Executives from Ruiz Foods Products Inc. and members from the Frisco Chamber of Commerce gathered March 6 for a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the company’s new home at Hall Park, off Gaylord Parkway and the Dallas North Tollway. The company’s new corporate home base spans 25,000 square feet and aims to employ 125 workers by August 2026.

Dallas Business Journal

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Bullet train backlash

Posted on by Michael Randle

A proposed high-speed rail line connecting Dallas and Fort Worth is still far from a done deal.

The train could connect the two population and business centers of the Metroplex, with an elevated portion running through downtown Dallas — and potentially connect to a station in the Cedars where passengers could catch another high-speed train to Houston.

In concert, this would mean the transformation of recreational and business travel in the state. But what has become clear in recent days is that powerful forces are still aligned against the idea. How that debate shapes up in the coming weeks and months could have ramifications for years to come on transportation and economic development in the Metroplex.

Dallas Business Journal

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Gov. Beshear: Kentucky Exports Break All-Time Record in 2023, Topping $40 Billion in Products Shipped Globally

Posted on by Michael Randle

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Feb. 29, 2024) – Today, Gov. Andy Beshear announced more Kentucky-made products were shipped around the world in 2023 than in any other year on record, as the commonwealth broke its single-year total with $40.2 billion in exports, a 16.6% increase over the previous year.

According to data recently made available by the U.S. Census Bureau, Foreign Trade Division and WISERTrade, aerospace products and parts once again led Kentucky’s exports by category in 2023. The industry shipped more than $13.3 billion in products out of the United States, representing a 27.7% increase over the previous year.

“In Kentucky, we’re working hard to ensure our place as a leader in economic development, and this growth in exports shows our efforts are succeeding,” said Gov. Beshear. “Thanks to 2023’s record high, Kentucky-made products continue to make their way into more homes and businesses all around the world. Our commitment to global partnerships is another way we’re showing Kentucky is the best place to do business and that Kentucky-made products are second to none.”

Pharmaceuticals and medicines, as well as motor vehicles, continued to show growth and remain among Kentucky’s leading exports. Pharmaceuticals saw $3.8 billion in products distributed, a 7% increase over the previous year, while $3.7 billion worth of motor vehicles were shipped globally, a 1.6% growth over 2022. Motor vehicle parts (over $1.7 billion) and basic chemicals (over $1.3 billion) round out the top five industries shipping products from the commonwealth.

The top export destinations have remained fairly consistent over recent years, with Canada once again leading the way with over $9.1 billion in products shipped north in 2023. The United Kingdom (more than $3.8 billion), France (over $3.6 billion) and China (more than $2.8 billion) remain in the top five destinations for Kentucky-made products, as Mexico, now Kentucky’s third-largest exports destination, moved into the top five with nearly $3.7 billion in exports last year.

Kentucky’s export growth builds on the best four-year period for economic growth in state history.

Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced more than 1,000 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling over $30.3 billion in announced investments, creating nearly 52,000 jobs. This is the highest investment figure secured during the tenure of any governor in the commonwealth’s history.

The robust job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. The average incentivized hourly wage in 2022 and 2023 topped $26 in consecutive years for the first time.

Gov. Beshear has announced some of the largest economic development projects in state history, which have solidified Kentucky as the electric vehicle battery production capital of the United States: Ford Motor Co. and SK On’s transformative $5.8 billion, 5,000-job BlueOval SK Battery Park in Hardin County; AESC’s $2 billion, 2,000-job gigafactory project in Warren County; Toyota’s $1.3 billion investment in Scott County; and INFAC North America’s $53 million investment in Taylor County, among others.

The Governor’s administration also secured the largest General Fund budget surplus and Rainy Day Fund, as well as the most jobs filled in state history. Last year, Kentucky set the record for the longest period with the lowest unemployment rates in state history.

Kentucky also secured rating increases from major credit rating agencies Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings, and Moody’s Investors Service upgraded Kentucky’s credit outlook from stable to positive.

Site Selection magazine placed Kentucky first in the South Central region and top 5 nationally in its 2023 Prosperity Cup ranking, which recognizes state-level economic development agencies for their success in landing capital investment projects.

Gov. Beshear announced a “Supply Kentucky” initiative with the goal of boosting job growth, reducing costs and providing more security in the supply chains of our Kentucky companies.

For more information on Kentucky exports, visit kyexports.com.

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Japanese Chemical Company UBE Announces $500 Million Investment to Build Louisiana Facility to Serve Growing EV Battery Market

Posted on by Michael Randle

JEFFERSON PARISH, La. – Japanese chemical company UBE Corporation announced it will invest $500 million to establish the first U.S. manufacturing facility for key electric vehicle (EV) Lithium Ion Battery (LiB) ingredients dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC). The project, which is intended to bolster the domestic battery components supply chain by reducing the current heavy reliance on Chinese imports, will be located at Cornerstone Energy Park (CEP) in Jefferson Parish.

A newly formed company known as UBE C1 Chemicals America, Inc. (UCCA), expects to create nine direct new jobs for UCCA, and 47 direct new jobs for Cornerstone Chemical Company, LLC, in support of UBE operations that will transition to UCCA over time. UBE estimates the project will also result in approximately 300 construction jobs at the peak of construction.

“This $500 million investment reinforces Louisiana’s leadership in the electric vehicle battery components supply chain, and is another win for southeast Louisiana’s manufacturing workforce, which is second to none,” LED Secretary Susan Bonnett Bourgeois said. “This decision by UBE Corporation is a vote of confidence from the global marketplace in Louisiana’s strategic location, rich natural resources and skilled workers.”

DMC and EMC are used to produce the electrolyte in lithium-ion batteries that contributes to extended battery life and increased driving range for electric vehicles. DMC is also a key ingredient in certain semiconductor manufacturing processes.

“UBE’s proprietary nitrite process, which we have been developing since the 1970s, enables us to realize a very limited environmental impact and much fewer by-products compared to other existing plants and processes, particularly in mainland China,” said Masato Izumihara, president and representative director of UBE. “This manufacturing facility will be UBE’s first large-scale chemical facility in the United States and CEP offers not only a strategic location, but Cornerstone Chemical Company, LLC, also offers raw materials needed for manufacturing, an abundant labor force and competitive logistic capabilities.”

UBE estimates its new facility will be capable of producing 100,000 metric tons of DMC per year and 40,000 metric tons of EMC, derived from DMC, annually. The company expects construction to begin before the end of the year, pending all necessary permit approvals. Construction is scheduled for completion in mid-2026 with operations to begin in late 2026.

To secure the project, the state of Louisiana offered a competitive incentives package that includes the comprehensive workforce development solutions of LED FastStart. The company is also expected to participate in Louisiana’s Industrial Tax Exemption and Quality Jobs programs.

“This project directly aligns with JEDCO’s efforts to generate quality jobs, investment and opportunities within the environmental and engineering industry,” said JEDCO President and CEO Jerry Bologna. “UBE’s investment in our community signals that Jefferson Parish can be a key player in this global industry. We are proud to support UBE’s project in Jefferson Parish and look forward to the significant economic impact it will have on our community.”

“It is an honor to welcome such a well-respected, multi-generational Japanese company to Jefferson Parish,” said Michael Hecht, president and CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc. “UBE’s new facility furthers Louisiana’s emergence as a leading location for future energy projects by establishing the first electric vehicle battery supply chain project in the Southeast Region. UBE’s operations will also bolster national security efforts by serving as the only U.S. site to provide these critical elements of the country’s energy supply chain.”

Register here to be notified about UBE job opportunities, hiring events and news updates.

About UBE Corp.
UBE Corp. is a Japanese chemical company manufacturing a wide variety of products including chemicals, plastics, battery materials, pharmaceuticals, and machinery. Its chemicals business is expanding from basic chemicals to high-functional products in advanced fields. Founded in 1897 in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, UBE Corp. provides products and services throughout Japan and around the world. Read more at UBE.co.jp/ube.

About LED
Louisiana Economic Development is responsible for strengthening the state’s business environment and creating a more vibrant economy. In 2023, LED attracted more than $25 billion of capital investment resulting in the creation of 19,000 potential new and retained jobs. Explore how LED cultivates jobs and economic opportunity for the people of Louisiana and employers of all sizes at OpportunityLouisiana.com.

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