On the dotted line: Peterson Offshore Group, a European energy logistics management operator, is expected to lease 1.2 million square feet of space in the Port Cameron Logistics Center. Peterson is expected to sign a letter of intent on Tuesday and will use the site to manage logistical operations for the port, its tenants and customers. The Dutch company will co-manage the development of the Port, a deep water energy support complex that will be built on the Calcasieu Ship Channel about three miles from the Gulf of Mexico. Port officials expect Peterson Offshore’s service to strengthen the port’s offerings to energy operators, drilling companies and service providers in the Gulf.
Pinched: Gulf Coast shrimpers are having to travel farther to catch their harvest amid projections that the annual “dead zone”—an oxygen-deprived swath in the Gulf of Mexico—could be one of the largest on record. Acy Cooper Jr., president of the Louisiana Shrimp Association and a lifelong fisherman, tells The Wall Street Journal the dead zone is devastating for fisheries and Louisiana’s shrimping industry. Further travel—either east toward the waters off Mississippi or closer to the coast to find suitable spots—causes fisherman to crowd into more-limited areas and requires higher fuel expenses. The catch also tends to come in smaller, leading to lower prices and less profits for fisherman. The Louisiana Seafood Board says the shrimping industry accounts for 15,000 jobs and an annual economic activity of $1.3 billion. Read more. (Subscription may be required)
Chipped: A Wisconsin company will ask employees to voluntarily consent to have a microchip implanted in their hands that would open doors, pay for purchases, share business cards, store medical information and login to their computers. The Washington Post reports Three Square Market, a developer of software used in vending machines, is hoping 50 employees will initially consent to the implant and is offering to pay the $300 implant fee if they do. The microchip would be placed between the thumb and forefinger and is said to have no GPS tracking capabilities. Chief executive Todd Westby wrote in a blog post that the program would be the first of its kind in the United States. “Eventually, this technology will become standardized allowing you to use this as your passport, public transit, all purchasing opportunities, etc.,” Westby wrote. Read more.
