Newtron Group founder dies at 81
A former Louisiana State University (LSU) baseball player and the founder of the Newtron Group died at age 81. LSU officals announced that Newton Thomas died July 19.
Thomas attended LSU from 1962 to 1967, where he played catcher for the Tigers.
He graduated from LSU with a Bachelor’s Degree in electrical engineering in 1967. After earning his degree, Thomas worked for Southern Instruments, an industrial controls contracting company, as an estimating engineer until he was promoted to president in 1971.
In 1973, Thomas, along with two other electrical engineering graduates, created the Newtron Group — one of the country’s biggest privately owned specialty industrial construction companies.
The Newtron Group — with offices across Louisiana, Texas, California and Nevada — has grown into a $1 billion company, employing about 4,500 people, many in Southeast Texas.
Waffle House opens in Silsbee
The second Waffle House restaurant in Hardin County opened July 17 with a ribbon-cutting in Silsbee. The new location is located near the intersection of State Highway 327 West and 4th Street.
According to Waffle House District Manager Jolene Cobb, the Silsbee store will be open from 7 a.m.-9 p.m., and eventually open 24 hours.
It will have 40 employees when fully staffed, Cobb added.
Applebee’s-IHOP combo coming
According to social media and media reports, an Applebee’s-IHOP combo is soon to arrive in Chambers County.
The store is being constructed at the Interstate 10 and Jenkins Road intersection, along with a truck stop, hotel and a recreational vehicle park.
In January, the first-of-its-kind location in Texas opened in Seguin, about 40 miles from San Antonio.
The Applebee’s-IHOP combo store will be operated under Dine Brands, a publicly traded food and beverage company that rebranded from IHOP Corp. after it acquired Applebee’s International for $2.1 billion in 2007.
It has since added Fuzzy’s Taco Shop to its portfolio of brands for $80 million in 2022.
Company donates steel pipe to OHS
OCI Refinery’s Methanex Beaumont donated several trailer loads of steel pipe and pallets of pipe fittings to the Orangefield High School Agricultural Technology and Mechanical Systems program.
The steel pipe will be used by the practicum in Agricultural classes and Agricultural Structures Design and Fabrication classes to develop industry based, job ready skills in stick, MIG, and TIG welding.
OCI representatives Brooklyn Goldsmith (OHS alumni), Dalton Walters, Donald Griffin and Mike Shumake helped to coordinate the donation.
Restaurant recognized by SETXRA
Tacos El Primo owner Alex Hernandez was recently recognized as the Southeast Texas Restaurant Association’s (SETXRA) Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year for 2025.
The award acknowledges culinary excellence and community contributions.
Tacos El Primo has three locations: 2800 College St. and 3595 Concord Rd. in Beaumont, and 720 State Highway 124 in Winnie.
Lumberton H-E-B set for $2.5 millon remodel
As H-E-B celebrated its 120th birthday this year, they remain committed to investing in its existing stores on top of expanding into new areas.
The city of Lumberton store is the latest recipient of upgrades with a $2.5 million remodel planned, according to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).
According to the project detail page, construction is expected to start on Jan. 19, 2026 with completion by Aug. 28, 2026, according to the TDLR. The design team is pb2 Architecture + Engineering of Rogers, Arkansas.
The TDLR permit revealed only that it will be an “interior remodel” of the existing store on Main Street. The store’s square footage is 27,122.
Motiva recognized for contributions to artificial reef
Last month, the Coastal Conservation Association Texas, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Greater Port Arthur Chamber of Commerce recognized Motiva for their contributions to the artificial reef program.
Since 2021, Motiva has donated more than $125,000 to help support building three artificial reefs along the Gulf Coast.
“This partnership demonstrates Motiva’s commitment to safeguarding our environments in the communities where we live and operate,” according to a statement from Motiva.
EPA proposes draft permits for CO2 storage in SETX
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed draft permits July 1 for Exxon Mobil’s planned storage of carbon dioxide in Southeast Texas.
The Region 6 office issued a public notice stating the agency plans to issue three Class VI well permits for Exxon’s Rose Carbon Capture and Storage project in Jefferson County that would draw CO2 from unidentified industrial emitters.
The project would store the climate-warming gas in rock formations that are between 3,400 and 7,800 feet beneath sea level, according to an EPA fact sheet. The company would be able to inject 5 million metric tons per year across all three wells, the document also said, and Exxon requested a 13-year injection period.
2025 Industry Show is Aug. 14 in Port Arthur
The Greater Port Arthur Chamber of Commerce announced the 2025 Industry Show is set for Thursday, Aug. 14, at the Robert A. “Bob” Bowers Civic Center, 3401 Cultural Dr. in Port Arthur. The event is 2-6 p.m.
Participating industries and partners include Port Arthur LNG, Motiva, Port of Port Arthur, TotalEnergies, BASF TotalEnergies Petrochemicals LLC, Gold Pass LNG, Entergy Texas, Texas Gas Co., Veolia ES, Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. LP, Bechtel Energy Inc., Howard Energy Partners, OCI Beaumont, Natgasoline, Phillips 66, Chevron New Energies, Colonial Pipeline, Oxbox Calcining and Energy Transfer.
For more information, call (409) 963-1107.
Golden Chick opens in Mid-County, coming to Vidor
In June, the new Golden Chick opened for business at 3380 FM 365 in Port Arthur.
Co-franchisee Karan Korpal, alongside his brother Raj Korpal, have other locations in Orange (1716 N. 16th St.) and Beaumont (4940 Concord Road).
Golden Chick is also building a store in Vidor at 1165 North Main St., reported Percy Flanigan, the Street/Drainage/Parks supervisor for the city of Vidor.
The first Golden Chick was founded in 1967 in San Marcos under the name Golden Fried Chicken.
Coastal Bend LNG to develop 22.5 Mtpa LNG export facility
Late June, Coastal Bend LNG announced it has initiated development of a 22.5 million ton per annum (Mtpa) natural gas liquefaction and export facility on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Coastal Bend LNG’s planned development will include up to five 4.5 Mtpa liquefaction trains, cogeneration, LNG storage tanks, and export facilities for shipping, bunkering, and ISO containers. Carbon capture, transport, and storage will be integrated into Coastal Bend LNG’s facilities to deliver low carbon intensity natural gas sourced from U.S. onshore basins.
“We are responding to growing global demand for low carbon intensity LNG,” said Nick Flores, CEO of Coastal Bend LNG. He added, “The integration of carbon capture on both our liquefaction and cogeneration facilities will deliver low carbon intensity LNG while monetizing both 45Q tax credits and our low-carbon products.”
Coastal Bend LNG expects to pre-file its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) permits during 2025.
Companies asks U.S. regulators for permission to re-export LNG from Oct. 1
July 2, Golden Pass LNG, which is owned by Exxon Mobil and QatarEnergy, has asked U.S. regulators for permission to re-export liquefied natural gas from Oct. 1, as the export plant nears production after previous delays, Reuters reported.
The company said it wants to re-export a cargo of LNG that it plans to import to cool down its export plant in Texas, which is still under construction. Cooling down the plant is often the final step before producing LNG.
Golden Pass is building an 18 million metric tons per annum (mtpa) LNG export facility in Sabine Pass and plans to start exporting LNG later this year. The project has been plagued with problems and is behind schedule and over budget. In March 2024, its then-lead contractor, Zachry Holdings, filed for bankruptcy and said the project was at least $2.4 billion over the original budget.
Zachry was replaced by McDermott International as lead contractor for Train 1 and the company has been in negotiations to take over the construction of the other two trains, or plants, associated with the project, according to Reuters.
Louisiana coffee brand wants to expand into Texas
Approaching three decades in operation, Louisiana-born coffee shop chain CC’s Coffee House is expanding into franchising, according to DailyCoffeeNews.com.
In January, the Baton Rouge-based company stated it is seeking franchise partners focusing on neighboring Southeastern states, including “select Texas markets.”
According to the report, In conjunction with the franchising program, CC’s is introducing a new drive-through-only store model, with an average size of about 800 square feet. The company said drive-throughs currently accounts for 75-80% of sales at CC’s 38 locations — all but two of which are in Louisiana. Existing CC’s store formats range from 1,500-1,800 square feet.
CC’s said potential franchisees must have at least $250,000 in liquid assets and at least $1 million in net worth, while prior experience in multi-unit operations and a commitment to opening three to five locations is preferred.
CC’s Coffee House was created in 1995 by former parent company Community Coffee. CC’s spun off as a standalone business in 2013.
Horizon Dental donates new dental assisting chairs
The Lamar State College Orange (LCSO) Dental Assisting program received a donation of new dental assisting chairs from Dr. Chris Riedel, lead dentist at Horizon Dental.
Riedel has a history of supporting LSCO by providing clinical opportunities for dental students and donating the panoramic x-ray machine currently used in radiology courses. His contribution of new chairs will ensure students have ample opportunities to receive hands-on training. and allot more time for each student to familiarize themselves with the assisting chair prior to stepping into clinical rotations.
Dental Assisting Program Director Colleen Baker said she’s thrilled with the new equipment in her classroom and is thankful to Riedel for his continual support of LSCO.
