For decades, the scenario was the same for Rio Grande Valley residents when it came time to make job choices after receiving their technical training and education at area colleges. The better jobs and higher pay were elsewhere. Be it at the Port of Houston or jobs at aviation manufacturing facilities in California, Valley natives searched nationwide for careers that could match their aspirations. That equation is beginning to change…
The fallout from the economic upheavals of 2020 when coupled with the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 have frayed supply chains from Asia and put global energy markets on edge. Two buzzwords are making the rounds of economic development talk as industries readjust and calculate what lays ahead. One term banding about is reshoring. This is the reestablishment of manufacturing operations in the United States after being previously located…
The official word finally came in late June with the announcement that Houston-based NextDecade was building an $18 billion-plus liquefied natural gas plant at the Port of Brownsville. For port executives and community at-large leadership, the announcement was a combination of relief and elation in definitively knowing they overcame all obstacles and last-minute legal challenges. Site work began the same day of the announcement. The dirt started moving on the…
The Brazos Island Harbor Channel Improvement Project continues to move forward, as Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation recently announced the receipt of Notice to Proceed to perform essential improvements to the Brownsville ship channel for NextDecade Corporation’s Rio Grande LNG project at the Port of Brownsville. Great Lakes will commence Phase 1 of the project later this year. The historic BIH project will deepen the 17-mile-long Brownsville ship channel…
NextDecade Corporation has made a positive final investment decision to construct the first three liquefaction trains at the company’s Rio Grande LNG terminal. It will be the largest proposed liquefied natural gas export facility in the United States and it will be at the Port of Brownsville. “The future of the Rio Grande Valley’s economy begins at the Port of Brownsville,” said Brownsville Navigation District Chairman Esteban Guerra. “On behalf…
Eduardo Campirano has been the chief executive officer at the Port of Brownsville for 16 years. For the majority of those years, one grand project has rattled around as a possibility during his administration. He recalled that 12 years ago, the earliest discussions began of a liquefied natural gas plant at the port. What began as both a distant dream and remote possibility has evolved over the years to one…
Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently highlighted the Port of Brownsville as a key component of Texas’ booming energy industry and as a critical asset to the Lone Star State’s economic success. The news came during an economic roundtable discussion with industry leaders and key stakeholders at the port March 30. “Ports are the gateway to the might of the Texas economy and the Port of Brownsville is vital infrastructure for…
The Port of Brownsville is closer to deepening the Brownsville Ship Channel after receiving a key permit June 6 from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The permit allows the advancement of BIH, the Brazos Island Harbor Channel Improvement Project, to its construction phase. The permit is the latest milestone in the effort to deepen the ship channel from 42 to 52 feet. This will thus result in significant navigational…
Companies investing in the Rio Grande Valley anticipate high demand for workers that may exceed 9,000 jobs. The news comes from seven large employers attending a Workforce Summit recently held at the Port of Brownsville. Three proposed liquefied natural gas plants will drive initial demand. The companies should receive their Federal Energy Regulatory Commission permits and commence construction within the next three years. During the construction phase these companies estimate…
The Brownsville Navigation District and NextDecade Corporation have come to an agreement set to deepen of the ship channel. The project will then transform the Valley business landscape. The Brazos Island Harbor Channel Improvement Project Funding Agreement commits NextDecade to privately fund key improvements to the Brownsville Ship Channel. The company will pay 100 percent of the deepening. The project will run from the Gulf of Mexico to the western…