Intermarine group acquires Houston breakbulk terminal

Intermarine group acquires Houston breakbulk terminal    New Orleans-based breakbulk and heavy-lift specialist Intermarine LLC said Wednesday that one its affiliated companies has purchased the Joe D. Hughes breakbulk terminal in Houston from Kellogg Brown & Root.
   It did not disclose the cost of the acquisition.
   The Intermarine group has used the Houston terminal as its Gulf load center for almost 15 years.
   The deepwater ocean terminal comprises about 120 acres including deepwater berths for up to four ocean vessels and more than 2,000 feet of barge dock. The facility specializes in handling heavy lifts, oversized and related project materials. “The facility is presently one of the largest terminal operations of its kind in the United States,” the shipping company said.
   Intermarine said the terminal will be renamed Industrial Terminals and operated by Industrial Terminals LP. Freight handling and stevedoring operations at the terminal will be contracted to Gulfstream Marine, the largest general cargo stevedoring company in Houston. Gulfstream will employ about 90 percent of the former Joe D. Hughes Terminal employees.
   “This acquisition is both a strategic move to guarantee a permanent home for our services, and an investment in the port of Houston that we feel complements our asset portfolio,” said Roger Kavanagh, president of Intermarine.
   Overall, services managed by Intermarine make about 175 vessel calls a year in Houston and handle about one million revenue tons of project, breakbulk and related cargoes.
   Mike Dumas, chief executive officer of Intermarine, said the company is evaluating infrastructure investments to expand the capability of the terminal.