SUGAR LAND, TX--(Marketwired - Sep 3, 2014) - Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas) -- The U.S. Gulf Coast is at the heart of what most will categorize as the biggest innovation in energy development so far this century, Shale Energy. While crude oil findings are important to domestic petroleum refiners and continue to fuel the debate about whether to open up U.S. crude oil exports, the sudden abundance of natural gas and natural gas liquids is the main driver of industrial project activity in the Gulf Coast region -- and these projects are large. Currently in the Gulf Coast region, Industrial Info is tracking 67 projects that have a total investment value (TIV) of $1 billion or more, resulting in a combined TIV of $168 billion.
While construction on a handful of these major projects, including LNG production facilities and ethylene crackers, is already under way in the region, these are the projects that are ahead of the curve. Most of the larger major projects remain in the planning, permitting and/or engineering stages, with construction set to begin in the next few years.
As these projects kick off and construction times overlap, craft labor needed for both capital and maintenance projects will be in high demand for the area. Industrial Info's current forecast for the entire Gulf Coast region estimates that labor will rise from 104 million man-hours in 2013 to a peak of approximately 184 million hours in 2016 for 12 different crafts, including welders, pipefitters, millwrights and others.
Depending on planned project activity and timing, different metropolitan areas along the Gulf Coast will experience labor deficits at different times. Areas of expected high labor deficit include Corpus Christi, Greater Houston, and Beaumont in Texas, and according to Industrial Info's forecasts, the largest deficits by far will be in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
While the Lake Charles area represents the most extreme case of upcoming labor demand and deficits, labor demand is reaching unprecedented levels across the entire Gulf Coast region, with other substantial labor shortfalls occurring in areas including Corpus Christi, Beaumont and Houston.
Industrial Info's Gulf Coast Region Labor Market Analysis, recently updated for 3Q14, provides detailed, insightful information on craft labor supply, demand and wage rates for 12 skilled crafts in eleven metropolitan areas along the Gulf Coast. Industrial Info conducts direct telephone interviews with key plant personnel to better determine current and future changes in wage rates. The analysis is updated quarterly to reflect the most recent changes in industrial project activity and includes: