Bobby Jindal News

U.S.-based offshore support vessel provider Hornbeck Offshore Services said Friday it had completed its reorganization and emerged from Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.The company had in April struck a comprehensive balance sheet restructuring support agreement with its lenders, to be implemented through a prepackaged chapter 11 filing in May in the Southern District of Texas.Hornbeck, which provides offshore services in the Gulf of Mexico and Latin America, said Friday that it had on September 4, 2020, emerged from Chapter 11 under its previously announced reorganization plan.Todd M.

Former Louisiana state official Scott A. Angelle will head-up the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). Angelle, who most recently served as Vice Chairman of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, will assume his new position May 23. “Scott Angelle brings a wealth of experience to BSEE, having spent many years working for the safe and efficient energy production of both Louisiana’s and our country’s offshore resources,” Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke said.

The Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans has elected Mr. Michael W. Kearney chairman. Mr. Kearney represents Orleans Parish and joined the Board in December of 2012 when he was appointed by former Gov. Bobby Jindal. He succeeds Mr. William T. Bergeron, whose term as chairman expired this month. Mr. Bergeron will continue to serve as a commissioner. In addition, the Board elected Mr. Robert R. Barkerding vice chairman and Mr. Laney T. Chouest secretary-treasurer. Mr.

Port of New Orleans' Board of Commissioners Elects William T. Bergeron Chairman; Michael W. Kearney Elected Vice Chair, Robert Barkerding Jr. The Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans today elected William T. Bergeron chairman. Bergeron represents St. Bernard Parish and joined the Board in November of 2012 when he was appointed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. He succeeds Scott H. Cooper, whose term as chairman expired this month. Cooper will continue to serve as a commissioner. In addition, Michael W. Kearney was elected vice chairman and Robert R. Barkerding, Jr. as its secretary-treasurer.

Governor Bobby Jindal and Viking Cruises Chairman Torstein Hagen announced the selection of New Orleans as the homeport for Viking River Cruises’ first North American river cruise itineraries. The Mississippi River cruises will operate from docking facilities near the French Quarter in New Orleans. Viking’s new service will result in the creation of 416 new direct jobs for Louisiana-based operations and vessel crews, with an average salary of $40,000, plus benefits; and Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in an additional 368 new indirect jobs, for a total of more than 780 new jobs in the Southeast Region of the state.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Martin Houston, Chairman of Live Oak LNG, has announced a new natural gas liquefaction and export project, up to a $2 billion investment, to be developed in the Calcasieu waterway. The $2 billion plant will be located on the Calcasieu Ship Channel and will create 100 direct jobs and 385 indirect jobs, the governor said. The permanent jobs will pay an average salary of about $75,000. About 1,000 construction workers will be hired. The mid-sized project is being designed for a plant capacity of up to five million tonnes per annum production and will include two 130,000 m3 storage tanks, and port facilities with a jetty for standard size liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal appointed James "Ray" Barker to the Louisiana Workforce Investment Council. Barker, of Raceland, is the Director of Human Resources at Bollinger Shipyards, Inc. The Louisiana Workforce Investment Council serves to develop a strategic plan to coordinate and integrate a workforce development delivery system to ensure efficiency and cooperation between public and private entities by advising the governor on the needs of Louisiana’s employers and its workforce.

Governor Bobby Jindal appointed south Louisiana businessman and entrepreneur Laney J. Chouest to the Board of the Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans. Chouest, who was sworn in during today’s Board meeting, will serve a five-year term, succeeding Joseph F. Toomy, one of two Jefferson Parish representatives on the regional Board that governs Port operations in Orleans, Jefferson and St. Bernard parishes. A native of Galliano, La. and resident of New Orleans, Chouest is the owner and developer of NOLA Motorsports Park in Avondale, La.

Louisiana Economic Development (LED) inform that Gov. Bobby Jindal has presented Metal Shark Boats, (headquartered in Jeanerette in Iberia Parish) with the Governor’s Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence. The Governor’s Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence is periodically awarded by the governor to businesses that grow and provide more opportunity, more jobs and more commerce for the state of Louisiana. Metal Shark Boats has grown from an employment of 75 in 2012 to 200 employees today. LED explains that Metal Shark Boats continues to expand production of boats up to 40 feet in length at its original shipyard, filling customer orders for the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Navy, law enforcement and conservation agencies, and commercial companies.

Today, Gov. Bobby Jindal joined Chiquita Brands International Inc. Senior Vice President Mario Pacheco to announce the company will relocate its shipping operations from the Port of Gulfport in Mississippi to the Port of New Orleans. Chiquita plans to ship 60,000 to 78,000 twenty-foot-equivalent units, or TEUs, per year at the Port of New Orleans, representing a roughly 15 percent increase in current container volumes there. Chiquita’s shipping operations will return to New Orleans after a nearly 40-year hiatus.

Governor Bobby Jindal and CEO Jack Jensen of Jensen Companies announced the development of a new 500,000-square-foot logistics facility by TCI Plastics – a Jensen Companies division – at the Port of New Orleans. TCI will make a $36.5 million capital investment to build the facility at its France Road Wharf hub, and the project will create 160 new direct jobs with an average salary of more than $33,400, plus benefits. LED estimates the project will result in an additional 183 new indirect jobs, for a total of more than 340 new jobs.

Today, Gov. Bobby Jindal and IT Minerals LLC CEO Jose Domene announced a $4.5 million capital investment by the company in Louisiana, where IT Minerals will establish an importing, processing and exporting facility at the Port of New Orleans for minerals sourced from Mexico and other countries. The project will create 12 new direct jobs with an average annual salary of $34,000 a year, plus benefits. LED estimates the project will result in an additional 28 new indirect jobs, for a total of 40 new jobs in the Southeast Region. IT Minerals is a manufacturer of lightweight aggregates and fillers for polymer-based products; construction products; and insulation, filtration, textile, cryogenic, horticulture and gardening products. Gov.

The board of commissioners for the Port of Greater Baton Rouge recently elected officers for 2014. Officers elected include Blaine Sheets, Ascension Parish, president; Clint Seneca, Iberville Parish, vice president; Corey Sarullo, Iberville Parish, secretary; and Bobby Watts, East Baton Rouge, treasurer. Blaine Sheets, president, is president of Specialized Industrial Maintenance in Gonzales and is a former member of the Board of Commissioners for the Pontchartrain Levee District. Clint Seneca, vice president, is the chief deputy assessor for the Iberville Parish Assessor's Office.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and International Shipholding Corp. President Erik L. Johnsen announced the company will relocate its corporate headquarters from Mobile, Ala., to New Orleans, where the business was founded in 1947. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange as ISH, the company owns and operates a global fleet of waterborne cargo vessels. ISH recorded annual revenue of more than $310 million in its just concluded 2013 fiscal year. After Hurricane Katrina, recovery challenges led the company to relocate its corporate headquarters to Mobile.

Today, Governor Bobby Jindal, officials from the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), Department of Economic Development and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation (BRAF) joined leaders from the City of Baton Rouge, The Water Institute of the Gulf, Louisiana State University and other coastal research institutes to unveil plans for the establishment of The Water Campus in Baton Rouge. The Baton Rouge Area Foundation has taken the leadership role in master planning a world-class Water Campus to be built just south of the Mississippi River Bridge in downtown Baton Rouge.

Approval clears way to create nation’s largest deepwater containerized cargo transfer terminal, enhancing U.S. competitiveness as Panama Canal expands. Transshipment facility off Louisiana coast intended to improve America’s strained shipping infrastructure, streamline international trade flow and create long-term jobs in 32 states. Louisiana State Senator A.G. Crowe’s vision of making America more competitive and capitalizing on the Gulf of Mexico’s deep-water resources has taken…

President Barack Obama toured the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal and spoke to a crowd of more than 500 on the importance of growing the nation’s economy through increased exports. He highlighted the 60 percent of the nation’s grain that is exported by ports along the Lower Mississippi River from states, such as his home state of Illinois. “Corn and wheat from my home state come down the River, ending up here and going all around the world,” President Obama said. “This is one of the busiest port complexes in the entire world…

The Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans has elected Daniel F. Packer chairman; also Gregory Rusovich as Vice Chairman, and Scott Cooper as Secretary-Treasurer. Gov. Bobby Jindal appointed Mr. Packer to the Board in January of 2010. He succeeds Mr. Joseph F. Toomy, whose term as chairman expired this month but will continue to serve as a commissioner. Mr. Packer, who will serve a nine-month term as chairman, is a native of Mobile, Ala. He earned a bachelor’s degree…

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Metal Shark Boats President Chris Allard announced the company will make a $1.52 million capital investment to expand its Jeanerette shipyard in support of military, law enforcement agency and commercial boat contracts. The expansion will create 88 new direct jobs, with an average salary of more than $62,000, plus benefits, and Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in an additional 134 new indirect jobs, for a total of 222 new jobs.

“Senator Landrieu is a champion for the offshore energy industry, and we applaud her tremendous efforts in brokering today’s meeting. We also thank Governor Bobby Jindal, Lieutenant Governor Scott Angelle, Senator David Vitter and Congressman (elect) Jeff Landry for their support. “Secretary Salazar’s agreement to meet face-to-face with industry to discuss a path forward out of the deepwater drilling and de facto moratoria in the Gulf and to provide certainty and regulatory clarity was a positive gesture, and while we appreciate his promise of forthcoming decisions and announcements it will be his deeds, not his words, that will enable the offshore industry to return to work. Today, the Secretary heard first-hand what inaction in Washington, D.C. does to Americas workers.

Governor Bobby Jindal has signed legislation that supports Louisiana’s ports by expanding a tax cargo credit for certain port projects. SB 122 — authored by Senator Norby Chabert— modifies the Investor Tax Credit (ITC) and the Import-Export Tax Credit (IETC) by expanding the types of projects that qualify for exemptions. Projects that will qualify for the credit include warehousing and storage, port operations, marine cargo handling, ship building and repairs and oil and gas activities. Governor Jindal said, “Today is a great day for Louisiana’s ports.

With State and Federal Assistance, Huntington Ingalls to Explore Options for Avondale Conversion; Save Our Shipyard Coalition Hails New Developments. "This is good news for the people of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana—indeed America," declared Metal Trades Department President Ron Ault, welcoming the announcement that Huntington Ingalls will collaborate with state and federal authorities to explore options to transition Avondale. One of those options would be converting the facility into a commercial shipyard. "We look forward to working with the state and all our stakeholders to maintain Avondale as the largest private employer in the state and as a pathway to the middle class for future generations," Ault said.

With skilled craftsmen in short supply in U.S. coastal areas, many shipbuilders turn to their own, sometimes extensive, internal training. Because fewer young people are entering shipbuilding out of high school, the industry is faced with an aging workforce that will soon have to be replaced. As good jobs for shipfitters and welders go begging, industry leaders say it's way past time to spread the word about these opportunities. Pascagoula, Miss.-based John Lotshaw directs Operations Workforce Training and Development at Huntington-Ingalls Industries (HII).