The New York Power Authority has selected OCO Global to lead a program designed to help attract more businesses and industry to St. Lawrence County.

The selection of the global business expansion search firm marks another step toward achieving a comprehensive economic development strategy for St. Lawrence County.

The Power Authority’s St. Lawrence County Economic Development Study, developed by McKinsey & Co. in December 2015, identifies opportunities for growth and action steps to bolster the North Country economy.

NYPA estimated that the strategies outlined in the study could create as many as 1,900 jobs and up to $190 million in new economic activity by 2020 in St. Lawrence County.

The selection of this marketing firm is the latest advance in the economic development initiative established by NYPA in collaboration with more than 130 St. Lawrence County officials, economic development experts, university presidents and business leaders.

OCO Global will pursue international companies from across the world that are ideally suited to fully utilize the county’s assets and who are poised to establish a U.S. location. It expects there to be significant business opportunities from the major global source markets of foreign direct investment such as Canada, Western Europe and Asia. The firm will be subcontracting with specialist firms in different locations to assist in the search.

OCO Global will work with a St. Lawrence County economic development team comprised of regional authorities, including NYPA, the St. Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency, Empire State Development, St. Lawrence County Economic Development Advisory Board and technical experts from the business sectors that are most attractive to the area, like agriculture and manufacturing.

To attract more businesses to the area, the firm is charged with leveraging the North Country’s assets, which include low-cost hydropower, world class universities and colleges, lower costs of doing business and abundant fresh water. The global search for industries and businesses to operate in the area will be completed within the next nine months and incentives are built-in to the outreach plan to encourage the best results.

OCO Global, with an office in New York and offices around the globe, is headquartered in Belfast. The firm is a recognized leader in global business attraction, successfully delivering internationalization strategies for companies since 2001. The firm has supported the creation of thousands of US jobs through their work attracting foreign direct investment on behalf of economic development organizations.