Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I N O. V I I I A P R I L 1 8 , 2 0 1 6 6 Maine sets all-time job listings record e Maine Department of Labor set an all-time record in the number of openings posted on its job list- ing website in April. "We have seen a sharp increase in employers at our job fairs, and we have almost doubled the number of job fairs we are doing from 2014 to 2015," Julie Rabinowitz, spokeswoman for the department told the Bangor Daily News. She expects even more job fairs to occur this year. e Labor Department started April with 10,195 open positions advertised on its website, according to the BDN. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E The U.S. Department of Transportation, through the Federal Aviation Administra- tion, awarded a total of $1,193,098 in grant funding to seven airports across Maine. Recipients included Hancock County-Bar Harbor Airport in Bar Harbor, $425,000; Knox County Regional Airport in Rockland and Oxford County Regional Airport in Oxford, $150,000; Belfast Municipal Airport in Belfast, $142,500; Water- ville Robert Lafl eur Airport in Water- ville, $135,458; Brunswick Executive Airport in Brunswick, $116,465; and Dewitt Field, Old Town Municipal Air- port in Old Town, $73,675. The Maine Credit Union League an- nounced for the 12 months ended December 31, 2015, combined assets at Maine's 60 credit unions increased by more than $400 million to $6.84 billion. Credits unions also experienced a 7.9% loan growth in 2015 with out- standing loans rising to $4.77 billion; savings grew by nearly $380 million, an increase of 6.9%, and are collectively at $5.8 billion for the Maine Credit Union System; and membership rose by 1.9%, or more than 16,000 members, to a new record of 667,427. Shopping center proposed for Westbrook e Westbrook planning board is reviewing submitted plans for a new 500,000-square-foot shopping center that would be anchored by a 155,000-square-foot Wal-Mart. e pro- posed shopping center would be located on Westbrook's Main Street, across from Westbrook Crossing — another shop- ping center that is anchored by a Kohl's department store, according to the Portland Press Herald. Other possible tenants could include the supermarket chain Market Basket, outdoor retailer REI and the warehouse retailer Costco. Gove told the Press Herald that he expects other national retailers to make their offi cial announcements in the next three months. Groundbreaking for the project could begin this fall, with stores in the shopping center likely opening in 2017. Currently, Maine is home to 25 Wal-Mart locations in addition to three Sam's Clubs. Wal-Mart has 7,000 Maine employees. Unum expands portfolio with $127M deal Unum Group, which has 2,800 employ- ees in Portland, acquired a Louisiana insurance company. Unum (NYSE: B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E S O U T H E R N THERE IS THERE IS A DIFFERENCE A DIFFERENCE THERE IS Because Construction Management Design/Build General Contracting Engineering Construction Management Design/Build General Contracting Engineering Harold Alfond Academic Center at Thomas College Sheridan Sheridan Construction Construction www.sheridancorp.com www.sheridancorp.com Fairfield Fairfield Portland 207-453-9311 207-453-9311 207-774-6138 J&S Oil, owner of eight Xpress Stop c-stores, acquired by Massachusetts energy company The assets of J&S Oil — eight Xpress Stop convenience stores with gas sta- tions, two Express Lube auto service stations, three Ultra Clean car washes, a wholesale fuel supply division and a transportation logistics business — have been acquired by Nouria Energy Corp. of Worcester, Mass. As part of the transaction, the company's retail heating business is also being sold to Augusta Fuel Co. "The J&S locations complement our existing Nouria operation in the great state of Maine because of their exceptional focus, and thriving private label fuel and carwash businesses," Tony El-Nemr, president and CEO of Nouria Energy, said in a press release. "We have great respect for the successful business that the Babb family and their team built over the years and look forward to working with and learning from this experienced group." The employee-owned J&S has been in operation since 1972, when owners John and Sonja Babb started with a single station. The Babbs have been recognized by the Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce as the 2013 Business Persons of the Year. In 2002, J&S Oil was named the New England ESOP Association "Company of the Year." "We were at sort of a crossroads of growth or retraction," John Babb told the Portland Press Herald. "Growth would have required much more capital and expertise than what we currently had at hand. When this opportunity presented, we saw the potential and the opportunities it would bring. We felt it was in our best interest to sell." Babb told the Press Herald that the employees of J&S will be retained as part of the transition, and that both he and Sonja will continue as directors of the J&S Division of Nouria Energy. Xpress Stop locations included in the acquisition are in Auburn, Augusta, Farmingdale, Lewiston, Manchester, Topsham, Waterville and Winslow. With the deal, Nouria now has 31 sites in Maine. Overall, Nouria Energy owns and operates 90 regional convenience stores and gas stations in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island and supplies fuel to 140 sites operating under the Shell, Irving and Gulf brands, as well as unbranded fuel across New England. — M a i n e b i z S t a f f P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F N O U R I A E N E R G Y C O R P. J&S Oil of Manchester was acquired by Nouria Energy, owner of 140 service stations.

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