Youngstown Utica & Natural Gas Expo kicks off

Staff report

BOARDMAN

The second annual Youngstown Utica & Natural Gas Conference and Expo got under way here Wednesday night with nearly 200 people packing the east ballroom at the Holiday Inn for a networking event.

Manufacturers, energy executives, heavy-freight carriers and even jewelry companies were in attendance.

Many had come from across the country to attend the event, which will feature 85 vendors and a multitude of keynote speakers.

The expo officially kicks off this morning at the Covelli Centre on East Front Street in downtown Youngstown and will split time with seminars at the Holiday Inn.

“Utica Shale is huge for the [Mahoning] Valley and Northeast Ohio,” said Robert Taylor of C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc., a global logistics and transportation company. “So many customers and companies are coming here from all over the country – really from all over the world.”

Both Taylor, and his colleague Paul Kellor, said the natural-gas business is a global draw for an area such as Youngstown.

“People want to say that Canton has become the center of Utica activity,” Taylor said. “But with Youngstown, you have the infrastructure that makes that activity possible.”

The networking session was a chance for out-of-towners to get acquainted and share insights on the natural-gas industry.

The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber is sponsoring the event, and the evening was casino-themed with blackjack, craps and roulette tables, as well as complimentary drinks.

Many were attending the conference for the first time. But those who attended the first event said it sizes up well with similar expos in places such as Houston and Denver.

The Young Expo, as it’s called, will wrap up Friday with seminars at the Holiday Inn.