NEW RIVER TRAFFIC TOWING OPERATION

A new towing operation for river traffic has been founded at Cape Girardeau.

Start-up of operations for Marine Equipment Towing Corporation (METCO), to be headquartered at Cape Girardeau, was Sept. 1. The new firm, which will provide towing services for river barge lines, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marine Equipment Management Corporation (MEMCO).

Michael W. Rushing, who recently joined MEMCO, will serve as executive vice president for the new towing company. Rushing was previously president of Rushing Marine Corp., which was formed in 1979, and prior to that he was operations manager for Missouri Barge Line, Inc.

The accounting and marketing operations of METCO will be supported by MEMCO at St. Louis, said Christopher M. Parsonage, president of MEMCO.

Operations started with one boat, the M/V Evelyn Rushing, a 4,200 horsepower tow boat which operates primarily on the Ohio River, towing MEMCO coal grain and other dry bulk commodities.

Two or three additional tow boats are planned for operation on the lower Mississippi River.

MEMPO is a subsidiary of Electric Fuels Corporation, the lead company in the Energy and Transportation Group for Florida Progress Corporation, a $4 billion holding company combining its utility company, Florida Power Corp., with diversified operations. Florida Progress and Electric Fuels is based in St. Petersburg, Fla.