Raleigh may get 325 jobs

Optimal Technologies would get $650,000 in incentives for downtown headquarters

RALEIGH -- State and Raleigh officials are betting $650,000 that an obscure Canadian company with 20 employees will make it big in downtown Raleigh.

Optimal Technologies US Inc., a software and technology provider for electric utilities, said Monday that it will move its headquarters from Calgary, Alberta, to downtown Raleigh, creating at least 325 jobs over three years.

The seven-year-old company stands to receive $325,000 from a state incentives fund controlled by Gov. Mike Easley and another $325,000 from Raleigh if it delivers the promised jobs, which would pay average salaries of $71,250, not including benefits.

The grant from Raleigh, approved Dec. 4 by the City Council on a 7-1 vote, marks only the second time the city has approved a corporate cash incentive.

The first was $375,000 promised to another Canadian company, RBC Centura, to move its U.S. headquarters from Rocky Mount to downtown Raleigh and build an office tower.

City officials were impressed that Optimal Technologies was backed in October with $25 million in financing from Goldman Sachs International. The investment will help the company develop and market technologies and services that improve energy efficiency for power companies and large businesses.

"There's not a lot of risk to the city," Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker said. "It's the kind of knowledge-based company that you want to have headquartered in your city."

Optimal expects to start moving into the top floor of the 19-story Two Progress Plaza building over the holidays and has retained a recruiting firm to hire engineers, designers, programmers and marketers. The building opened in 2004 and houses Progress Energy offices, with several restaurants and stores on the ground floor.

Optimal plans to lease 27,000 square feet to accommodate the first 105 employees. Company officials are optimistic about their prospects, saying they could expand to 500 jobs. Only 325 positions would be rewarded with financial incentives.

The company also considered moving to other technology hubs, including Austin, Texas, and the Silicon Valley in California.

"The talent pool was probably the biggest driver," said Lynette McInnes, Optimal's vice president of marketing. "The talent pool in Raleigh is unsurpassed."

The company plans to keep an office in Calgary, where founder and CEO Roland Schoettle will remain.

Though little-known in this area, Optimal represents Raleigh's bid to boost its stature by attracting corporate headquarters. Companies based in a city typically invest heavily in local arts and culture, gain political influence and raise a city's profile.

Though it's a fast-growing city, Raleigh is home to only one Fortune 500 corporation, Progress Energy.

However, the Triangle continues to attract big businesses. This year, the state announced three major corporate relocations or expansions in Wake County: Drug testing companies INC Research agreed to create 1,093 jobs, and PRA International plans to create 494 positions. Technology company Network Appliance will add 646 jobs.

"Three hundred and twenty-five jobs in downtown Raleigh is fabulous," said Adrienne Cole, executive director of Raleigh Economic Development. "It's a headquarters moving into an area where the city has invested significantly."

Optimal provides services to manage utility transmission systems and power grids. The company is also planning to introduce a product next year to help commercial and apartment buildings manage energy.

Though Optimal would share a building with Progress Energy, it does not have a business relationship with the utility, which has 3.1 million customers in the Carolinas and Florida. Optimal also does not count Charlotte-based Duke Energy as a customer.

Progress Energy, working with state and local officials, helped recruit Optimal Technologies. Progress Energy would not discuss the terms of the lease, which has not been signed. The utility is not giving Optimal a break on electricity rates, Progress Energy spokesman Mike Hughes said.

To qualify for the performance-based incentives, Optimal has to keep the promised jobs for at least two years.