Gulf Coast Maritime Blogs

Economic Analysis of Offshore Marine Industry Could Sway Policymakers

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on March 1, 2010

From the halls of Congress to the county courthouse, lawmakers and government bureaucrats alike love numbers. They use them in graphs and display them on poster boards so all can see the benefits of the latest program or industry up for debate at any particular time.

Expansion of Offshore Lease Sales Could Be Delayed by Obama Administration

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on January 28, 2010

In a closed door meeting last week in Houston, Texas, Lars Herbst, the Minerals Management Service director for the Gulf of Mexico, told industry leaders there would be delays in plans to expand offshore drilling off the Atlantic coastline, specifically Virginia.

Shipyard Contracts, Announcements Spell Relief for Some in South Louisiana

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on January 26, 2010

An order for eight new offshore supply vessels and a company’s decision to build a new 400-foot icebreaker for Shell in Louisiana recently provided nearly as much relief to Gulf Coast shipyard workers as Garrett Hartley’s 40 yard field goal…

O&G Industry Finally Has Something to Buzz About in G of M

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on January 19, 2010

The prospect that the Gulf Coast – specifically 12,000 to 28,000 feet below the shallow waters of the Gulf Coast – could contain whole new energy reserves has the industry abuzz in recent weeks. New Orleans-based McMoRan Exploration Co. got…

Deeper Drilling In Shallow Water Could Save Shelf Work for O&G Service Companies

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on January 12, 2010

New Orleans-based McMoRan Exploration Co. reported this week what could be one of the largest oil and gas finds in decades in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico, according to company Co-Chairman James Moffett. McMoRan drilled more than 28…

Government Contracts Provide Boost For Gulf Coast Shipyards

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on December 23, 2009

Pascagoula, Miss.-based VT Halter Marine and Lockport, La.-based Bollinger Shipyards announced major awards of government contracts in the last week giving both a boost to morale and their bottom line as a rocky 2009 comes to an end. The U.S.

Long-Time Port Fourchon Director Retires

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on December 11, 2009

Ted Falgout took the reins of Port Fourchon in 1978 – then a small coastal port in Louisiana. There were two tenants located on four acres of land and a budget of about $200,000. Today, Port Fourchon is home to 150 companies, spread through…

New Report Looks To New Technology For Cleaner Energy

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on December 9, 2009

On the heels of the climate summit in Copenhagen, a new report by the co-founder of Cambridge Energy Research Associates outlines a more sensible approach to solving the world’s energy woes than just ‘green’ ideas.“Clean Over Green: Striking…

Gulf Shipbuilders Could Ride ‘Green’ Wave in Future

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on December 3, 2009

The head of a national shipbuilding association said their industry’s future could rest with innovative new green initiatives. Matthew Paxton, president of the Shipbuilders Council of America, spoke this week at the International Workboat Show in New Orleans…

InterMoor Expansion Could Boost La. Marine Industry

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 24, 2009

An international company that builds rigging components for deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil and gas platforms is expanding its operations in south Louisiana thanks to the financial incentives offered by state and local officials. The news…

Gulf Coast OSV Operators Hope IRS Fulfills Directive for Foreign Vessels

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 20, 2009

U.S. flagged offshore service vessel operators are hoping the Internal Revenue Service follows through on a recent directive to its field officers to crack down on foreign vessels working in the U.S. offshore oil and gas industry. Keith Jones…

Gulf Coast States Hoping to See Green This St. Paddy’s Day

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 18, 2009

Offshore oil and gas pundits typically get a feel for the future of a region and the health of the industry by gauging interest and bid amounts during regular MMS lease sales. The next scheduled sale for the Gulf of Mexico is set for March 17, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced.

White House Job Summit Could Start With Easing Business Climate

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 13, 2009

Skyrocketing healthcare costs are the fault of big bad insurance companies. High fuel costs are the fault of Big Oil. Wall Street’s woes are solely the responsibility of greedy CEOs and out-of-control investment bankers. One would think anyone…

Ida Provides Pause in Gulf of Mexico

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 10, 2009

Then comes Ida – a late-season hurricane/tropical storm – the only storm to threaten Gulf oil and gas interests in 2009. The storm forced the evacuation of about 158 production platforms, or roughly 23 percent of the manned platforms in the Gulf.

Higgins Boats Continue To Tell WWII Story in New Orleans

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 6, 2009

The National World War II Museum held the grand opening of its new 70,000 square-foot expansion today in New Orleans and the centerpiece of the entire experience continues to be a single revolutionary vessel design, which many credit for the…

Louisiana Shipbuilder - Building for the Future

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on November 4, 2009

Private, diversified companies have the good fortune of surviving times of economic distress by investing in the future. That’s the game plan of Galliano, La.-based Edison Chouest Offshore, which owns and operates a fleet of more than 180 vessels…

Interior Should Incentivize U.S. Offshore Exploration

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on October 29, 2009

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar recently visited Murphy Oil’s Medusa platform located about 100 miles off the Louisiana coastline. The spar platform is located in the deepwater Gulf in Mississippi Canyon Blocks 538 and 582. Medusa, as well as…

Real-Time Information Now Available to Mariners on Lower Miss. River

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on October 27, 2009

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration unveiled its new Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System, of PORTS, in New Orleans. The system provides real-time information via the Internet or phone to ship captains and mariners along the Lower Mississippi River.

Stimulus for Whom?

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on October 23, 2009

That’s right, while Congress and the Obama Administration want to reinvest in the nation, proposals of new taxes, emissions restrictions and cap-and-trade are chasing away investment from the United States. On Wednesday, Questar Corp. CEO Keith…

‘America’s Energy Coast’ Could Benefit From Offset Plan

Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime (by Matt Gresham) on October 13, 2009

Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have long forged a bond to lobby together for coastal needs. The four states make up America’s Energy Coast, an initiative of the America’s Wetlands Foundation, to shed light on the region’s coastal activities that drive the nation’s offshore energy supply.