Edgen Murray launches IPO

Baton Rouge-based Edgen Murray, a global distributor of specialty steel pipe that services the energy industry, has filed a $250 million initial public offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The IPO was filed Sept. 24. Company officials declined to comment, citing SEC regulations. Edgen Murray is a leading distributor of specialty steel and alloy pipe, plate, sections, piping components and valves. It has 25 locations worldwide, more than 2,700 customers and revenues expected to top $1 billion this year—up from $918 million last year. Edgen Murray—which ranked No. 3 on Business Report’s 2008 list of the Top 100 private companies in the Capital Region—has grown by acquisition in the past decade, and now has the entire value chain of the energy market covered, supplying product for exploration and production, transmission and processing, and also for refining. In recent years the company has also moved into supplying to power generation facilities. This is not Edgen Murray’s first attempt to go public. A planned IPO was indefinitely postponed earlier this year, a decision analysts attributed to unfavorable market conditions.—Stephanie Riegel

Comments mixed on $700 billion bailout

Financial commentators were critical of the $700 billion financial bailout plan that was making its way through Congress today. Caroline Baum, a columnist for Bloomberg News, called the proposal a pig with lipstick, and says that Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson did a poor job of selling it. "We will never know what would have happened without the largest government bailout in history. And it's far from clear this new New Deal will be the end. Surely there is a better way to dispose of bad assets," Baum writes. Read her column here.

John Paulson, president and portfolio manager for Paulson & Co., a New York-based investment management firm, wrote a column for The Wall Street Journal arguing that a better plan should have been adopted. Instead of buying up the "toxic debt" of financial firms, Paulson says the government should follow the lead of Warren Buffett and invest the $700 billion in the preferred stock of troubled companies. " The financial market is stabilized, companies get recapitalized, failures are avoided, debt securities are supported, and time is gained for illiquid assets to mature," Paulson says. Read the column here. (Registration required)

Meanwhile, New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, a Princeton economist, says the bailout plan released by Congress "is a lot better than the proposal Henry Paulson first put out—sufficiently so to be worth passing. But it’s not what you’d actually call a good plan, and it won’t end the crisis." Read Krugman's column here.

LSU-Florida game to kick off in prime time

LSU’s Oct. 11 football game at Florida will be nationally televised by CBS with a 7 p.m. kickoff as part of a Southeastern Conference doubleheader, the league announced this morning. The Tigers (4-0, 2-0 SEC) climbed to No. 2 in the USA Today poll and No. 3 in the Associated Press rankings after a 34-24 victory Saturday over Mississippi State. The Gators (3-1, 1-1) fell to No. 12 in the AP poll and No. 13 in the USA Today rankings after a 31-30 loss Saturday to Ole Miss. The teams played in prime time last season in Tiger Stadium, with LSU rallying for a 28-24 victory. CBS' 2:30 p.m. game on Oct. 11 features Tennessee at Georgia.

Meanwhile, LSU quarterback Jarrett Lee has been named the SEC Freshman of the Week for his performance against Mississippi State on Saturday. Lee, a redshirt freshman from Brenham, Texas, completed 18-of-27 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns in his first career start. Now four games into his freshman season, Lee currently ranks second to Florida’s Tim Tebow in the SEC in pass efficiency with a 146.51 rating. Lee has completed 45-of-77 passes for 643 yards and six touchdowns.

Summa office building gets new look

Spatz Development of Chicago has changed plans for its office building at Essen Lane and Summa Avenue. The building now will be two stories, with 70,000 square feet of space, instead of an eight-story tower with 92,000 square feet of space. Spatz says the change will let the developer to reduce effective rents by one-third. "This will get us down to the high teens-low 20s per square foot, instead of in the high 20s," says Bryan Spatz. The company plans to put dirt and landscape the roof in order to keep the building cooler; Spatz says he might also seek green certification. Two tenants will take up the first floor: Learning World, a Spatz-affiliated day care center, and Jumpin' Jungle, a play and party facility. Spatz says he's hoping to get another 15,000-square-foot tenant before going ahead with construction. "There's just not a ton of expansion going on now, because of what's going on in the financial markets," he says. The office building should be completed by the end of 2009.—Timothy Boone

Feds allocate $667,000 to study B.R.-to-N.O. railroad

The Federal Railroad Administration has awarded a $667,000 grant to study linking Baton Rouge and New Orleans with a passenger railroad. The grant will go toward a feasibility study that will look at the capital and operating costs, revenue, potential ridership and the environmental impact of rail service, says Karen Parsons, executive director of the Southern Rapid Rail Transit Commission. The SRRTC promotes passenger rail service in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. "If we're ever going to have passenger rail between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, this step has to take place," Parsons says. "This will give us the complete picture and the assessment that the state of Louisiana and the Legislature will use to allocate and authorize funding.” Parsons wouldn't guess how much it would cost to establish rail service, but says the study would provide a more accurate number. The study should be completed by April. The plan is to use the existing Kansas City Southern rail line and right of way for the passenger line. "This would be for business people who have to go to New Orleans or Baton Rouge on a regular basis," she says. "It would also be open to people who live in the towns and cities in between."—Timothy Boone

Mezzo signs agreement with major manufacturer/supplier

Mezzo Technologies, a Baton Rouge high-tech firm that designs "micro device" products for potential application in military, aerospace and other areas, hit a major milestone in the quest to get its products to market. Mezzo has signed an agreement with Ohio-based Triumph Thermal Systems, a leading global manufacturer and supplier to the military and aerospace industry of heat exchange and thermal transfer systems and components. Mezzo President Kevin Kelly calls the agreement a "major development" toward getting his company's products—such as high-tech radiators—into widespread application. Triumph was founded in 1929 and is a subsidiary of Triumph Group. "We don't really make money unless Triumph can win contracts and make products based on our ideas," Kelly says. "I think we've got a product that has a good shot but that doesn't mean it's on the plane. That's where Triumph comes in."—Steve Clark

Why Michael Jackson thinks he can win

When Democrats look at the 6th Congressional District and the increasingly complex re-election hopes of incumbent Congressman Don Cazayoux of New Roads, many can’t help but get a little queasy. Polls have shown leads for Bill Cassidy, a Republican state senator from Baton Rouge, possibly because of the inclusion of a third no-party candidate.

State Rep. Michael Jackson of Baton Rouge, who dropped his Democratic registration after he says party leaders shunned him, is competing for the same black voters that would likely go to Cazayoux. As for polling, Jackson has his own research that shows he can win under certain circumstances, thanks in large part to the voter excitement created by the Barack Obama presidential campaign. Jackson even has a special logo that pairs him with the Democratic nominee.

Obama is expected to turnout the black, Democratic base in record numbers this fall and Jackson says he is perfectly positioned to ride those coattails. In a recent campaign newsletter, supporters are told that Jackson, as a no-party candidate, could squeak by Cassidy and Cazayoux in the Nov. 4 election since only a plurality (one more vote than the closest contender) is needed to win.

In the 6th Congressional District, blacks account for 34.9% of the electorate, Republicans are 33% and white Democrats are 32%. “In the Democratic run-off for Congress in [the] April [special election], Michael Jackson received 90% of the African American votes and between 10% and 20% of support from white voters,” the newsletter states. “If we maintain these percentages, it will be more than enough to win this election—40% wins it!”—Jeremy Alford

Annual diversity forum scheduled

The Louisiana Diversity Forum will be held Oct. 16 at the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center. The event, sponsored by Kean Miller, will feature representatives from Wal-Mart, Cox Communications and the University of Texas. The forum is free and open to anyone interested in diversity and inclusion. For more information, or to RSVP, e-mail lauren.babin@keanmiller.com.

Poll: Most planned to watch debates

Fifty-four percent of Daily Report readers who responded to an online survey say they planned on watching Friday's presidential debate. Thirty-nine percent say they didn’t plan to watch the first debate between Barack Obama and John McCain, and 7% weren't sure. Nearly 1,000 people participated in the survey.

Today's question: Should the members of Louisiana's Congressional delegation vote in favor of the $700 billion financial bailout plan?

News roundup: Consumer spending drops … Survey shows parents are a bad example for teen drivers … Forum scheduled for judge, D.A. candidates

Economic slowdown: Consumer spending in August fell to its lowest level in six months. The Commerce Department said consumer spending remained unchanged in August, rather than increasing 0.2% as economists had expected and the worst showing since February. Personal incomes rose a better-than-expected 0.5% after falling 0.6% drop in July. But after-tax incomes fell by 0.9%. Incomes benefited in past months from the government's stimulus checks. … Not practicing what they preach: A report shows that parents often exhibit the same kind of risky driving behavior about which they warn their teenagers. The survey, from State Farm, shows that while 94% of parents restrict their sons or daughters from talking on a cell phone while they drive, 65% use the phones at least some time. Sixty-eight percent of parents say they are in a hurry at least sometimes when the drive and 65% operate a vehicle when they are tired. State Farm released the report in time for October, a month when there's a spike in teen vehicle crashes. … Legal eagles: A candidate forum for state district court judge, juvenile court judge and 19th Judicial District attorney will be held at 6 p.m. tonight at the McKinley Alumni Center. The event is sponsored by the Louis A. Martinet Foundation, a professional society for black attorneys.