Vol. 4, No. 7, December 2019
From left to right: Ralph Cowen, Brownsville Navigation District Secretary; John Wood, Brownsville Navigation District Commissioner; Sergio Tito Lopez, Brownsville Navigation District Vice Chairman; Mary Treviño, Welding Works International, Inc. Executive Administrator; Alfredo de la Fuente, Welding Works International, Inc. President; Christina de la Fuente, Welding Works International, Inc. Manager; John Reed, Brownsville Navigation District Chairman; and Esteban Guerra, Brownsville Navigation District Commissioner.
Welding Works Int. Named 2019 Chairman's Award Winner
Welding Works International, Inc. has been named the Port of Brownsville 2019 Chairman’s Award honoree in recognition of the company’s 20-plus years of setting a high standard in safety training and providing ongoing contributions to the well-being of the Rio Grande Valley community.

Brownsville Navigation District Chairman John Reed presented the award to Welding Works President Alfredo de la Fuente at the Customer Appreciation Luncheon event held on December 3. The event was attended by more than 200 guests, including port tenants, business leaders and local, regional and state public officials.

“Welding Works International is a homegrown success story that is well-known for supporting a range of services to South Texas,” said Reed. “With large scale-industrial projects expected to kick-off at the port, specialized construction skills will be at a premium. Such skills are what distinguish the 2019 winner of the Chairman’s award.”
2019 Capital Investments Review
The Port of Brownsville is making significant infrastructure investments to enhance its operations and attract new businesses to the region.

Take a look at how t he Port That Works continues to transform the economic landscape of the Rio Grande Valley.
Photo Courtesy of NextDecade

Rio Grande LNG is one of the three LNG projects at the Port of Brownsville approved by FERC on Nov. 21.
LNG Projects Move Forward

The Port of Brownsville is one step closer to welcoming three new LNG projects with an investment totaling $38.75 billion after the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved their proposals Nov. 21 during its monthly commission meeting.

"Today’s announcement is another significant milestone in making these energy projects a reality and is the result of years of hard work by the applicants," said John Reed, Chairman of the Brownsville Navigation District. "We’d like to thank FERC for its effort and diligence in reviewing these proposals and thank our community for their support. These new energy projects reflect our long-term strategy and vision for the port to be a catalyst for economic growth in the Rio Grande Valley by encouraging domestic and international business investments and driving developments that create new good paying job opportunities for the region."
Windmill blades and other components regularly arrive at the port, where the windmill industry has taken root creating a new industry for the Rio Grande Valley.
Wind Project Volumes Increase at U.S. Ports
Editor's Note: This article was originally featured at www.JOC.com. Click on the link to read the complete article.
Ports across the United States saw volumes of wind industry project cargo increase this year, and with 45.6 gigawatts (GW) of production capacity already in the development pipeline, that growth is expected to continue into 2020 and beyond.

Steve Tyndal, senior director of marketing and business development for the Port of Brownsville in Texas, told JOC.com 2019 has "been a strong year but, honestly, 2020 looks like it could be better."

Brownsville is an import and export destination for wind components, principally blades. Manufacturers TPI and Nordex use the port in "significantly large volumes," Tyndal said. Some pieces are stored and shipped inland, while others are received and exported to wind farms in northern Mexico.

Tyndal said the port attracts wind components for regional developments "because the prevailing winds in South Texas tend to blow at high velocities during the day, when power companies have their peak demand," and thanks to "an abundance of available land for laydown area for the wind sector."
Port Director and CEO Eduardo A. Campirano, Texas Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Robert Allen, Brownsville Navigation District Chairman John Reed, NextDecade Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development Patrick Hughes.

TEDC Presents
Business Summit
The Texas Economic Development Corporation held the Regional Business Summit at the Port of Brownsville on Monday, Nov. 18. to discuss how the Port of Brownsville is transforming the economic landscape of the Rio Grande Valley.

The event also focused on the economic opportunities that the Rio Grande LNG project will bring to the region and the State of Texas.
 Industrial Development Director Beatrice Rosenbaum Retires
From left to right: Eduardo A. Campirano, Port Director and CEO; Beatrice Rosenbaum, Industrial Development Director and John Reed, Brownsville Navigation District Chairman.
Brownsville Navigation District Director of Industrial Development Beatrice Rosenbaum retired after more than 46 years of dedicated service.

Rosenbaum first joined the Port of Brownsville as a staff assistant, eventually earning the title of Director of Industrial Development.

"Beatrice has distinguished herself as a leader, an incredible asset to the port,” said Port Director Eduardo A. Campirano. “While she will be missed, we wish her the best on this new journey."

Throughout her career at the Port of Brownsville, Rosenbaum raised a family of three and received a B.A. in Applied Arts & Science majoring in Marketing and Management from the University of Texas Brownsville.

Rosenbaum has stayed on part-time to assist in the transition of departmental duties to her successor
Brenda McKendrick, who has been named Director of Real Estate Services.
The Port of Brownsville honored its Veterans during a luncheon Nov. 12.
Veterans Honored at Luncheon
The Brownsville Navigation District held a Veterans Day Luncheon on Nov. 12 to recognize and thank Brownsville Navigation District Commissioners and employees in celebration of Veterans Day at the Port of Brownsville Police Command Center.

"We recognize that the freedoms we enjoy are not free, we thank you for your service to our nation and to Port of Brownsville," said Deputy Port Director Donna Eymard.
BROWNSVILLE NAVIGATION DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS

Chairman

Vice-Chairman

Secretary

Commissioner

Commissioner
PORT OF BROWNSVILLE ADMINISTRATION

Port Director & CEO


Contact Us:
Ph:  956.831.4592 / 800.378.5395
Fax:  956.831.5006
CALENDAR
December 4
BND Board Meeting

December 7
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

December 18
BND Board Meeting

December 21
First Day of Winter

December 22
Hanukkah Begins

December 24
Christmas Eve - Port offices closed

December 25
Christmas Day - Port offices closed

December 31
New Year's Eve

January 1
New Year's Day - Port offices closed

January 6
Epiphany Day

January 8
BND Board Meeting

January 20
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

January 22
BND Board Meeting

February 5
BND Board Meeting

February 19
BND Board Meeting
The Port of Brownsville resumed operations under Port Condition 5 set by the U.S. Coast Guard. Port Condition 5 goes in effect during what is considered to be the non-hurricane season from December 1 to May 31 each year.

The port had been operating under Condition 4 since June 1, when the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season began. 
 
Port staff prepares year-round to ensure the highest safety measures and effective communications are in place.
 
The 2020 hurricane season will officially begin on June 1 and NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center will provide its initial seasonal outlook in May.
OmniTRAX staff pose before Christmas tree at the Port Administration Building Complex.
Toy Drive Kicks off Holidays
The Port of Brownsville held the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony and toy drive kick-off on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at the Port's administrative offices to celebrate the holiday season.

The toy drive to benefit two local charities:

Proyecto Juan Diego and St. Eugene de Mazenod Catholic Church.

If you would like to participate, please bring a new unwrapped toy to the following toy drop off stations at the port:

Port of Brownsville Administration Building Complex, 1000 Foust Road,

Overweight Permit Office, 1801 Foust Road.
BRS: Port is "Preferred Site"
Millions of tons of steel lab, plates, wire rod, hot and cold rolled steel (pictured), beams, pig iron, ingots, and other forms steadily flow from the Port of Brownsville’s docks to Mexican manufacturers.
Nothing has been announced officially, but Big River Steel CEO David Stickler’s recent public comments increasingly make it sound like a steel mill at the Port of Brownsville may be a question of "when" rather than "if."

In a mid-October interview with energy and commodities analyst S&P Global Platts, Stickler said the company is "just now aggressively ramping up efforts for a second flat-rolled mill in Brownsville."

"We now have company formed called Brownsville Investment Group LLC, a.k.a BIG LLC. ... That is a development company that is now taking over the development work to get that project off the ground," quoted the S&P Global article.
Editor's Note: This article is featured on www.BrownsvilleHerald.com.
Click on the link to read the complete article.
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