Gulf Cable Expansion

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SPOTLIGHT

Gulf Cable, one of Northwest Florida’s largest and fastest-growing manufacturers, is getting much larger.

The Milton-based company, which makes insulated, high-voltage electrical cables for solar and wind energy farms, recently was deeded 30 acres for its expansion plans within the Santa Rosa Industrial Park.

The $2.5-million price tag for the land was waived by county commissioners because Gulf Cable’s capital investment will far exceed $20 million and has the potential to create between 600 and 800 new jobs.

Long-term capital plans call for the addition of 1.2 million square feet of manufacturing space, says Kevin Bate, executive vice president of Gulf Cable’s parent company WTEC Energy.

The announcement comes fewer than two years after it expanded its Milton operation with a new 160,000-sq.-ft. manufacturing plant. The company first located in Santa Rosa in 2006.

Bate says Gulf Cable’s business is booming and told county commissioners the global renewable energy markets it supports will be spending some $5 trillion worldwide by 2030.

‘‘As that renewable energy industry continues to grow, our market continues to grow,” says Bate.

County Commission Chairman Sam Parker says the county in 2024 will be actively addressing major concerns expressed by Gulf Cable employees about affordable housing and infrastructure improvements.

“I think you will see, in the next calendar year, probably some gears really shifting and this board taking some different directions to make sure we can address those infrastructure needs ... to support Gulf Cable’s business,” says Parker.

AEROSPACE

• The FAMU-FSU College of Engineering is using a recent $5-million Air Force grant to research the high-speed flight of highly advanced aerospace vehicles that can change shape while in flight. “This research program has potential commercial use for advanced aircraft as well as energy systems to advance wind power and gas turbines,” says William Oates, chair of the FAMU-FSU Department of Mechanical Engineering.

EDUCATION

• Pensacola State College's newest and largest building, the Bear Jones Moore Reeves Center for Math and Advanced Technology, is open. The 59,080-sq.-ft. facility will provide state-of-the-art instructional space for PSC’s math department and room to expand its advanced technology and cybersecurity programs. "Our cybersecurity programs are among our most rapidly growing degree programs," says PSC President Ed Meadows. Construction on the $22.5-million facility began in June 2022.

GOVERNMENT

• The city of Pensacola is in active talks to secure an agreement with Baptist Health Care for the donation of its former 50-acre campus in exchange for paying for the demolition of the old hospital. The estimated cost of demolition of the multistory building is in the range of $15 million to $20 million.

HIGHER ED

• Florida A&M University’s ambitious housing construction goals took a big step forward after the Florida Board of Governors recently approved its 700-bed residence hall request. The board’s approval also gave FAMU the goahead to seek nearly $103 million from the U.S. Department of Education’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Capital Financing Program to finance the construction. The project is the first ofthree that aim to fulfill FAMU’s goal of having 4,000 on-campus beds.

LEGAL

• A Pensacola business owner was awarded $1.69 million following a recent civil trial over allegations that rogue Skanska USA barges destroyed his burgeoning oyster farm. Travis Gill, the owner of the DeLuna Oyster Company, claims that two Skanska barges moored in Pensacola Bay were not properly secured to withstand Hurricane Sally in 2020. The barges broke loose from their moorings during the storm and plowed through his oyster cages, destroying his crop of hundreds of thousands of oysters. It’s unclear whether Skanska will appeal the civil verdict.

LOGISTICS

• Construction is underway on Hershey’s Ice Cream’s 30,000-sq.-ft. distribution center in Santa Rosa County’s Northwest Florida Industrial Park. The Pennsylvania- based company’s project, once completed, will significantly expand its Northwest Florida storage and distribution capabilities.

TRANSPORTATION

• Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport’s 2023 passenger count broke its all-time record with a passenger count that topped 1.85 million, an increase of 200,000 passengers over its previous 2021 record. Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport also set a record with a total of 2.25 million passengers in 2023.

Tags: Northwest, Feature