During a special Nov. 5 meeting, the Port of Grays Harbor
Commission granted Executive Director Gary Nelson, authority to execute a $1.3
million promissory note and enter into an agreement to purchase 19.67 acres of
land and assets from Pivotal Solutions.
The deal includes the assets of the facility, such as
intellectual property on the process of turning scrap plastics into usable
building material.
The facility is the centerpiece of the Satsop Business Park,
a mixed-use facility less than two hours southwest of Seattle and two hours
north of Portland. It is home to more than 30 businesses and 600 acres of
developed land and buildings.
“After analyzing the risk of the purchase of the assets
against the rewards should we succeed in finding a user for the site, my fellow
Commissioners and I felt the jobs and economic activity created, hedged against
the liquidation value of the equipment, mitigated any financial risk to the port,”
Port Commission President Chuck Caldwell explained.
At the same time the promissory note was approved, the
Commission also granted the port’s executive director authority to sign a
Letter of Intent with NewWood International, LLC, which outlines the terms of a
lease and the potential purchase of the equipment and intellectual property.
NewWood International is an affiliate of Triventas, a private investment firm
based in Pittsburgh, which was presented to the Port Commission in June as a
potential operator of the facility.
“This approach is the quickest and best way to get the
facility up and running, and creating jobs for the region,” commented Gary
Nelson, Executive Director. “We are hopeful Triventas will be a good tenant for
the facility and bring it into production again in the shortest amount of time
possible. Their commitment to success will be a win for all parties.”