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Photo courtesy of Mid-South Control Line, Marrero, LA

Washington, D.C. - Mid-South Control Line, a small business in the oil and gas industry headquartered in Marrero, Louisiana, is benefiting from the support of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) to expand its international sales to energy customers in 37 countries. Since the company began using EXIM products, Mid-South Control Line has grown from two to 20 employees at its facilities in Marrero and Houston, Texas.

To draw attention to the White House's Made in America Week, EXIM is showcasing companies such as Mid-South Control Line whose success in exporting illustrates how American businesses-small and large-contribute to U.S. economic prosperity by sustaining and creating jobs in the United States.

Mid-South Control Line is a global supplier and manufacturer of hydraulic control lines, tubing encased conductors, and cable protectors for leading companies in the oil and gas industry. Their products are used during completion of oil and gas wells. Founded in 1989, the small business with 30 employees was one of the first to focus its business on these components as a product line and provides customized solutions for its customers.

To foster its export business, Mid-South Control Line turned to EXIM, using the agency's export credit insurance and working capital loan guarantees to expand.

"EXIM has helped Mid-South grow our international business by providing a secure support system when setting up new customers outside of the USA," said Rick Lore, Sr., president and founder of Mid-South Control Line. "Before we established our relationship with EXIM, I was very leery in giving any credit to companies that I was not either familiar with or who didn't have U.S. ties for payment purposes."

Mid-South Control Line relies on two EXIM products: the working capital guarantee (which helps in the pre-export phase to provide necessary cash flow) and export credit insurance (which helps in the post-export phase to insure payment of foreign receivables). EXIM has supported more than $116 million of the company's exports since 2014.

During the manufacturing phase, the company uses EXIM's working capital guarantee, which enables companies to obtain necessary financing and maintain their cash flow, working through lender J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

When the exports have been shipped, the company uses EXIM's export credit insurance, which allows companies to offer credit terms to their buyers, to remain competitive, and to expand into new markets. J. Maxime Roy Inc. in Lafayette, Louisiana, is the EXIM insurance broker.

Mid-South Control Line is among the largest U.S. exporters in its industry. This year, the company will fill more than 300 export orders, valued at nearly $20 million and destined for 37 countries, Lore said. "Without the EXIM coverage, some of these orders would not have happened," he said. "It has been a great feat to see our growth in the international market that we work in, and EXIM has played a huge part in our success."

ABOUT EXIM BANK:

EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to overseas purchasers of U.S. goods and services. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, 90 percent of the total number of the agency's authorizations has directly supported small businesses.

For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.