The Louisiana shipbuilder that operates Tampa Ship LLC at the Port of Tampa is considering Tampa, along with Houma, La., as a site to build an arctic icebreaker for Shell Oil.
However, an official with Edison Chouest Offshore said he is not familiar with a proposal submitted to Florida economic development officials last summer for a project by an unnamed maritime company, which would expand its local operations and create 400 jobs in Tampa at an average wage of $44,341.
Edison Chouest bought Tampa Bay Shipbuilding & Repair Co.'s lease a year ago and retained its 500 employees. The company will decide by year's end whether to build the ship in Tampa, where it is rebuilding and improving its shipyard. Shell would operate the ship in Alaska's waters.
The icebreaker would take 1.3 million hours of labor to build and would be delivered by March 2012. It would be 360 to 400 feet long, longer than a football field, including the end zones.
Just how many new jobs that might amount to is uncertain at this time, said Roger White, who directs business development for Edison Chouest.
The decision involving Louisiana is tied up in an issue involving negotiations with the Port of Terrebonne to build a dry dock there. A decision is expected before year's end.
"We see opportunities in both places," White said.
A filing with the Hillsborough County Commission on the October agenda states that an unnamed company - a customary procedure in economic development negotiations - would invest $19 million in Hillsborough County.
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