Gulf Island Fabrication’s Houma shipyard will begin accepting applications later this month for jobs created by an expansion of its Shipyard Division, Houma Today reports.
Richard W. Heo, president and CEO of the Houston-based company, said the jobs will support a backlog of work that includes ferries, university research vessels and Navy salvage and rescue ships.
Louisiana Economic Development estimates the expansion will result in 123 indirect jobs, for a total of 229 new jobs in Terrebonne Parish. Additionally, Gulf Island will retain 308 existing jobs at its shipyard along the Houma Navigation Canal.
The action, announced Wednesday by Heo and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, comes as the company, which builds oilfield platforms and ships at its Houma site, struggles financially amid an offshore oil bust that started in mid-2014.
“Gulf Island has long been recognized as a leader in the construction and repair of marine vessels,” Edwards said in a news release. “Shipyards have been a pillar of our coastal economy for many years, and this employment expansion at the company’s shipyard facility near Houma is welcome news for Terrebonne Parish and the surrounding area. Gulf Island should find our skilled workforce in the Bayou Region ready and able to take on the shipyard’s increasing workload.” Houma Today has the full story.
