TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay economic development leaders are focusing on the region’s growing blue economy, a water-based sector tied to ports, shipping, defense and other industries.
One example is Seagate Space, a Tampa Bay-based company that is developing an offshore rocket launch vessel.
Very much like a SpaceX droneship that recovers the first-stage booster, but Seagate Space’s vessel will also be able to launch a rocket.
Michael Anderson, the company’s co-founder and CEO, said Seagate Space is a little more than a year old and is currently in the prototype phase.
“This is a render of our offshore launch platform,” Anderson said, showing off a rendering. “I should say one of the designs that we’ve conceptualized.”
Anderson said the first part of the full-sized prototype is currently being built in Port Tampa. He said the company’s goal is to support space missions from the water.
“We want to be the first company to launch a liquid-fueled, orbital-capable rocket at sea from U.S. shores since the early 2000s,” Anderson said.
The Tampa Bay Economic Development Council said the blue economy is becoming a focus for business growth in the region.
Craig Richard, the council’s president and CEO, said Tampa’s development has long been tied to its access to water.
“Civilization has built around ports and water, you know, since the beginning of time,” Richard said. “Tampa is no different. We emerged from an opportunity to do trade along the water.”
Richard said Port Tampa, area military bases and the region’s university system are assets for companies considering Tampa Bay. The council’s newest strategic plan focuses on growing a talent pipeline for blue economy businesses.
“If we build the type of talent pipeline that the blue economy needs, companies will come,” Richard said. “That’s today’s economic development mantra. If we build it, they will come.”
According to numbers referenced by the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, Hillsborough, Pinellas and Manatee counties have about 4,200 blue economy businesses employing 92,000 people. Those companies have a combined payroll of about $3 billion and contribute more than $6 billion in GDP.
Anderson said Seagate Space is already considering how many workers it would need to build more vessels in the area.
“At full utilization, you could see as many as 600 skilled manufacturing jobs coming into the area,” Anderson said.
Other local organizations are also focusing on the sector. Tampa Bay Wave, a local startup accelerator, is hosting Blue Tech companies it wants to help grow.
St. Petersburg College also released information last month about blue economy-related programs it offers.