10
LouisianaExport Guide
2015-2016
N
ational and international energy
companiesarevying forwaterfront
real estatealong theMississippi
Riverwithin thePortofSouthLouisiana. In
fact, theport isnowwitnessing themost
economicdevelopmentalong theMississippi
River since the1960s,when thepetrochemi-
cal industry started to locate in the region.
According toPaulAucoin, ExecutiveDirec-
torof theport, theeconomicboomhasbeendrivenby the low
priceofnatural gasand reinforcedby theport’sdeep-water
locationalong the river. “Thedifference from50yearsago is
thatmore foreigncompaniesare investingandbuilding their
factories in theU.S. are relocating to the statesbecause itmakes
economic sense for them todo so,”he says.
Since2008, theU.S. hasbeen theworld’s largestproducer
ofoil andnatural gas, afterovertakingRussia’soutput. In fact,
Louisiana isoneof thecountry’s topnatural gasproducers—
providingalmost10percentof thenational output.Muchof the
growth is coming fromhydraulic fracturingof shale rock forma-
tions, knownas fracking.
Withina three-yearperiod (2011-2014), theAmerican
ChemistryCouncil reportedalmost200announcementsofnew
chemical plantsorupgrades to theexisting fracking industry in
theU.S.,with investments totaling$124billion. Theboom in
frackinghasdrivengasprices toanall-time low. Inexpensive
natural gaspricesofferprospects lowerelectricitycosts,which is
agreatplus for themanufacturing sector.Otherproducersuse
natural gas, insteadofpetroleum, asa rawmaterial.
Louisianacurrentlyhas investors contemplating investing
more than$80billion intonewprojects in the state, including
$14.6billion in theRiverRegion that is servedby thePortof
SouthLouisiana. TheRiverRegion is slated to secure interna-
tionalmanufacturing investors fromNewZealand (SouthLouisi-
anaMethanol), China (YuhuangChemical), Russia (EuroChem),
Canada (FirstBauxite), andNorway (KongsbergMaritime).
Othersoriginatecloser tohome, suchasTexas,NorthCarolina
(Nucor), andDelaware (AMAgrigen Industries). Thesecompa-
niesarepoised tocreatemore than1,400 jobs.
Withall theelements inplace forahealthyeconomy—acces-
sibility tonational and internationalmarkets; a strongbusiness
climate; the lowcostofnatural gas; thousandsof acreswith
available river frontage; anda skilledmanufacturingworkforce:
ThePortof SouthLouisiana’smainobjective is to remainpre-
pared for thegrowthwave that’shitting the stateof Louisiana.
Formore information, please contact Paul Aucoin, Executive
Director, Port of South Louisianaat 985-652-9278 or via email at
Port ofSouthLouisianaEnjoysStrongGrowth
Paul Aucoin
