No jobs lost as fuel co. goes to Edna
By BRENDA SOMMER bsommer@leader-news.com

Although Sun Coast Resources Inc. is moving its offices from El Campo to Edna, no jobs will be lost - in fact, the company is hiring.

Steve Boyd, Sun Coast senior managing director, said the office move came because the company is consolidating offices into buildings it owns.

"We'll continue to serve that entire area, it's just we just purchased a facility we were leasing in Edna," Boyd said. "We'll have sales representatives, drivers and fuel, all the same products and services as before in El Campo. Although we were operating out of (El Campo), we really didn't own the facility."

Sun Coast came into the El Campo market in July of 2006, when it purchased a portion of Mauritz & Couey, an El Campo fuel distributorship in business since 1921. Sun Coast bought Mauritz & Couey's commercial fuel and bulk fuel storage division, which had sites in El Campo, Edna, Port Lavaca and Bay City.

"We'll have sales representatives in El Campo and be able to offer the same products and services as Mauritz & Couey did," Boyd said. "It's really not too much change except the physical facility. We're still open 24 hours a day to serve commercial fuel and lubricant needs like we have, and like we plan to do for many many years going forward."

He said as far as he knows, no local jobs have been affected, though he didn't immediately have an exact number of El Campo employees available.

"I believe everybody's moving forward with Sun Coast," he said. "I haven't seen any displacement in jobs."

Sun Coast is in its 23rd year of operations in Texas, and has more than 600 employees in the state - a figure that's doubled during the last four years, Boyd said.

"Our commitment to the area is stronger than it's ever been: We've hired new people, added assets and just purchased another big property in Corpus Christi to augment that entire region," he said. "We're looking forward to many good things for Sun Coast and that community, and the feedback we've been getting is very favorable."

Boyd said his company has felt accepted in the area.

"Our customer base has treated us with a great deal of respect and loyalty, and we really appreciate that," he said.

The company continues to grow, and Boyd said Sun Coast is hiring.

"We're always looking for good people," he said. "Tell them to get ahold of us at www. suncoastresources.com. We'd love to chat with them."

Sun Coast Resources, founded in 1985 by Kathy Lehne, is one of the largest petroleum marketers in the country, with annual revenues approaching $1 billion. The company serves markets in 16 states from its offices in Houston and Dallas.