Port of Lake Charles Commissioners on Thursday approved an option for a long-term lease agreement on 200 acres with G2X Energy, a Houston-based energy company that plans to build a $1.3 billion natural gas-to-gasoline facility on port property located across from Calcasieu Point Landing on the Industrial Canal.

The G2X Energy project is expected to create 243 new direct jobs, resulting in an estimated 748 new indirect jobs. According to the company, the direct jobs will pay an average salary of $66,500 plus benefits.

“The Port of Lake Charles property was chosen for the new energy project due to its refined logistics, transportation infrastructure and cooperative assistance, as well as the state’s business climate,” said Port Director Bill Rase. “The product can be distributed by pipeline to U.S. markets and by ship to foreign markets.”

Helping to secure the project, Louisiana Economic Development offered a $5-million performance-based grant for infrastructure improvements at the Port, including an access road, utilities and a dock facility.

Should groundbreaking begin in mid-2014, G2X expects construction to span three years, leading to an estimated completion date in mid-2017.

Along with visionary leaders and the state’s business climate, Port of Lake Charles Executive Director Bill Rase credited the Calcasieu River Ship Channel itself for the latest string of industrial announcements.

“The channel is maintained by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers with the port serving as local sponsor for the state. The channel is greatly responsible for our region’s thriving energy corridor, and the port has played a crucial role in this community’s economic development since opening its first wharf and transit shed in 1926,” said Rase. “In 2012 alone, major announcements from Ameristar, Lake Charles Clean Energy, Sasol and now G2X have been due in part to the Calcasieu River Ship Channel.”

The impact of Ameristar, Lake Charles Clean Energy, Sasol and G2X will benefit the region for a very long time. Initial reports estimate a total of 15,000 to 20,000 construction jobs for the combined projects, in addition to an estimated 14,000 permanent direct and indirect jobs. The 2012 announced projects along the channel represent a capital investment estimated at between $20.3 and $25.3 billion dollars.

President Harry Hank of the board of commissioners said “The ship channel is important not just for Southwest Louisiana, but for the entire country. This waterway is the carrier of 7.5 percent of the nation’s daily oil consumption and handles 58 million tons of cargo annually.”

In addition, dozens more Port of Lake Charles tenants and customers benefit from the Calcasieu River Ship Channel. Those include Alcoa, Ameristar, Arrow Terminals, BG Americas and Global LNG, Cal Western Packaging, Citgo, Crowley Marine, Dynamic Industries, Farmers Rice Mill, Federal Marine Terminals, Firestone, Foss International, Francis Drilling Fluids, Gearbulk, Geo Specialty Chemicals, Halliburton, IFG Port Holdings, James J. Flanagan, Lake Charles Clean Energy, Lake Charles Stevedores, Leevac Industries, Louis-Dreyfus Corp., Louisiana Pigment, Louisiana Rice Mill, Phillips 66, Pinnacle Entertainment, Port Aggregates, Reid and Company, Sam’s, Sasol, Sempra Energy, Shaw Modular Solutions, Talen’s Marine, Trunkline LNG, Union Pacific Railroad and USDA.

On the heels of the port’s decision to option to lease 200 acres to G2X, Magnolia LNG announced plans for a $2.2 billion export facility on Thursday to be located on Port of Lake Charles property. Maurice Brand, Magnolia LNG managing director and joint chief executive director, announced plans to develop a natural liquefaction production and export facility that would create 45 new permanent jobs and an estimated 1,000 construction jobs.

The mid-scale LNG facility would be located on 108 acres at the port’s Industrial Canal and would produce 4 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas per year. Construction would be in 2015 pending the company’s attainment of permits and final financing.

The Port of Lake Charles encompasses 203 square miles in Louisiana and owns and operates two marine terminals and two industrial parks and is the fourteenth-busiest seaport district in the U.S. according to the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. For more information on the Port of Lake Charles, visit www.portlc.com or call 337-493-3513.