Canadian Electric Boat Manufacturer to bring 285 jobs to Bay County
Featured in News Channel 7 (WJHG/WECP)
Article by Alyssa Dutton
Panama City, Florida (WJHG/WECP) - An international company is opening a U.S. shipyard in Bay County.
Voltari Electric Inc., a Canadian-based company that manufactures electric motored boats with carbon fiber hulls, will expand its manufacturing operations to Panama City. The facility will serve as the company’s U.S. headquarters and research and development center.
The project is expected to create 285 jobs with an average annual salary of approximately $77,000.
Bay Economic Development Alliance President Becca Hardin said this puts Panama City on the map as a leader in the marine industry.
“We made a concerted effort to start recruiting boat manufacturing companies. It made sense because we are surrounded by water and we have great infrastructure to help support that industry,” Hardin said.
Voltari is acquiring and transforming the Queen Craft Shipyard, located near Frankford Avenue, which has been in operation since 1974. The shipyard has direct access to St. Andrews Bay.
Voltari CEO Cam Heaps said the company identified Bay County as an ideal location for marine technology development.
“We were quick to identify Bay County which we hadn’t been to before and learned about the incredible epicenter for marine technology. Not only the right environment for our ability to manufacture but to conduct 12 months a year research and development which has been hard to do on frozen water,” Heaps said.
The project includes facility upgrades, manufacturing equipment, and an AI lab.
“The innovation and technology that this company will bring to this community is like nothing that we really ever seen before. It really brings a level of expertise that really is the future of the boating industry,” Hardin said.
Heaps said in a short period of time the world’s newest technologies will be floating around St. Andrews Bay.
Voltari will invest almost $38 million into the project. The Canadian company will expand into Bay County later this year and expects to have product by 2027.
