Posts Tagged ‘Santa Teresa’

Release Courtesy of the Governor’s Office

January 8, 2010
Alarie Ray-Garcia (505) 476-2248

SANTA FE- Governor Bill Richardson today announced Johnson Plate and Tower will build a wind tower manufacturing facility in Santa Teresa. The facility is expected to create dozens of construction jobs and 150 permanent jobs.

“I am pleased that Johnson Plate and Tower chose New Mexico to build its new wind tower manufacturing plant and plans to create 150 new jobs in our state,” Governor Richardson said. “This announcement shows that our aggressive efforts to create jobs, especially during this global recession, are paying off. Manufacturing of green technology is an important component of building a green jobs economy here in New Mexico.”

Today President Obama announced that Johnson Plate and Tower is one 183 projects that will share $2.3 billion in Recovery Act Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits for clean energy manufacturing projects across the United States. Johnson Plate and Tower was awarded $2,385,000 in credits for its Santa Teresa facility.

Johnson Plate and Tower will build its more than 84,000 square-foot manufacturing facility on 22 acres in the Verde Logistics Park. The company expects to employ 40-50 people during the construction phase and then move to a full time operation employing 150 people in the manufacturing of wind towers for wind farms across the country.

“We are excited that Johnson Plate and Tower chose to locate in our growing industrial border-plex region here in New Mexico,” Economic Secretary Fred Mondragon said. “I want to commend Dona Ana County for the passage of the Local Economic Development Act that helped make this project possible.”

Happy New Year and welcome to 2010.  As we start a new year it is always important to reflect upon the past year’s events, both the challenges and the opportunities, and use these experiences to change strategies and/or direction where they are needed to become more productive and successful.

We started 2009 with what I believe were a greater amount of “unknowns” than “knowns”;  fears following a stock market crash, government bailouts, mass foreclosures, growing unemployment rates, and discussions of a recession was the topic of many conversations.   These were the challenges over the past year that all communities, businesses, and economic development agencies had to deal with, not just MVEDA.  As a region, Dona Ana County was not immune to this crisis.  We began the year at 5.5% unemployment and ended the year hovering around 7%.  However, compared to a 7.8% unemployment rate at the State level and a 9.4% rate at the national level (as of November), Dona Ana County actually fared pretty well.  And although we experienced the loss of a large employer with the Frontier Airlines’ reservation center closing here in Las Cruces, we were also balanced by increases in hiring by other service centers including Sitel, CyraCom, and Convergys.  We also experienced some decline in production/manufacturing jobs and the loss of Multi-Plastics.  However, we also experienced an unprecedented level of interest by companies in the emerging alternative energy sector which has led to some key opportunities; earlier in the year eSolar and NRG Energy announced a 92 megawatt solar project for Santa Teresa and earlier today, Johnson Plate and Tower announced their plans to build a wind tower manufacturing facility, also in Santa Teresa.    Sapphire Energy has invested $8 million in its research and development facility at the Las Cruces West Mesa Industrial Park and will invest another $100 million in Southern New Mexico to produce biofuel from algae.  Along with other alternative energy groups who have identified the region for their projects, Dona Ana County could realize up to 200 new jobs and up to $300 million dollars in new capital investments in the years to come as a result of 2009 activity.

At MVEDA, we enter 2010 optimistically.  After dropping out of the top five rankings of the best performing small cities by Forbes and the Milken Institute between 2002 and 2006, the Las Cruces NM MSA has again made the list of the Milken Institute’s top ten “Best Performing Small Cities.”  As Spaceport America comes on-line and if some of the other projects in our pipeline materialize, it should lead to regaining a top five position in the near future.

But we also realize that we have not yet fully escaped the economic crisis of the past year.  We know that economists are now beginning to talk about a recovery.  We know the current holiday shopping season experienced a 3.5% increase over last year’s holiday season illustrating an increase in consumer confidence.  We know from reports that foreclosure numbers will decrease from the levels experienced in 2008 and 2009.   We also know we have a pipeline of projects and companies that we are working with who are considering the region for growth.  We know that there is a growing alternative energy industry with its eyes on New Mexico and that MVEDA has been aggressive in gathering the attention of this industry.  But we also know that we still have a lot more to do.   But at least we enter the New Year with a few more “knowns” than the “unknowns” of 2009.

Zoe Richmond, Union Pacific’s Director Public Affairs, Arizona & New Mexico Corporate Relations, sponsored a breakfast for MVEDA Partners and updated them on the status of the new terminal planned for Strauss (Santa Teresa), New Mexico. The $150M terminal expansion was announced by Union Pacific CEO Jim Young and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in October, 2006.

Zoe Richmond

Richmond’s presentation noted that Union Pacific has invested more that $1 billion in projects along the Sunset Corridor which runs from Los Angeles through El Paso. She pointed out that Union Pacific now owns 2,219 acres of land surrounding the Strauss terminal location. The land was acquired by trading an $11 million ranch in central New Mexico to the State Land Office. The timeline for the start of construction has been delayed due to the economic downturn.

J.H. Rose Logistics is an American owned national transportation and logistics provider, handling over 30,000 shipments per year. The company has offices located across the country including a 44,000 square foot facility in the Santa Teresa Logistics Park in Santa Teresa, New Mexico.  They have been named a “Best Broker” by the National Association of Trucking Companies in recognition of outstanding credit practices and are an approved carrier by the Department of Defense. The company is also a member of the Transportation Intermediaries Association and the Platinum Performance Program, two organizations committed to integrity and ethical business practices.

J.H. Rose Logistics was presented as a success story and model company at the recent NAFTA Institute Trade Conference.

The Office of Mexican Affairs of the New Mexico Economic Development Department, the New Mexico Partnership and the International Business Accelerator assisted J.H. Rose Logistics with their expansion to Santa Teresa in 2007.

For more information about J.H. Rose Logistics visit their website or see their video on YouTube.

The 16th Annual NAFTA Institute “Supplier Meet the Buyer” Trade Conference attracted record crowds to Sunland Park, New Mexico on June 11-12. The event, held at the Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino, began with business-to-business roundtables between over 250 suppliers and buyers from 43 maquiladoras such as Foxconn, Delphi, Bombardier, Toro, Sumitomo, ADC Telecommunications and Electrolux. An additional 300 small businesses attended the event to promote their products in the small business B2B sessions and to learn about cross-border trade.

On the following day, attendees heard from experts on a variety of issues ranging from border security to rail shipping to financing issues. There were also presentations regarding Foxconn’s San Jeronimo project, Union Pacific’s Santa Teresa rail relocation project, and the Punta Colonet port project.

The annual event is organized by the International Business Accelerator (IBA). Additional event hosts for 2009 included the New Mexico Economic Development Department Office of Mexican Affairs, The North American Institute (NAMI), the Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance, Gobierno Municipal De Juarez, Western New Mexico University and the New Mexico Small Business Development Center (NMSBDC).

See related articles from the Las Cruces Sun-News, El Paso Times, New Mexico Business Journal .