Henwood moving into Natomas West

Henwood Energy Services Inc., a fast-growing energy technology and consulting firm, will move its headquarters to the emerging Natomas West office park in South Natomas, officials said Thursday.

The 16-year-old company, which numbers 14 of the 15 biggest utilities in North America among its clients, actually will move only about half a mile south of its current offices.

But the decision to lease a 60,000-square-foot complex at Natomas West -- with an option to take two more buildings at the park -- ends a search that could have moved Henwood out of Sacramento.

"In my mind, Henwood is a local success story," said Kristan Otto, city development manager. "And that's what we want to see here, headquarter companies of that standing."

Henwood has about 145 employees at its current headquarters and 20 other workers in offices in Atlanta, London and Australia.

The privately held firm is on track for about $23 million in sales this year, said Vice President Tom O'Meara and expects to have about 160 local employees when it moves next summer.

Founded in 1985 by President and Chief Executive Mark I. Henwood, the company provides software, data and consulting services to global power generators, utilities, energy service companies and power marketers.

The software helps clients make strategic decisions by forecasting demand and revenue from existing and proposed power plants, O'Meara said.

Henwood also maintain comprehensive databases on power generators and the transmission system for North America, Europe, Australia and seven countries in Asia.

Clients include power generators such as Calpine, Reliant and Duke, along with municipalities including Roseville, Riverside and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

O'Meara said Henwood is outgrowing its space at the Metro Center office park on Gateway Oaks Drive. The company looked at sites in West Sacramento, Roseville, Rancho Cordova and El Dorado Hills before signing a nearly nine-year lease at Natomas West.

Development manager Otto and others credited Mayor Heather Fargo and Deputy City Manager Tom Lee with helping to keep Henwood in Sacramento.

Fargo and Lee spurred processing of a building permit for Natomas West that will allow Henwood to meet its schedule for moving, according to Otto and commercial brokers Tom Aguer and Matt Havelock.

Havelock, who represented Henwood, and Aguer are partners in the brokerage firm of Aguer Pipgras Associates, which is marketing Natomas West.

The office park is being developed by Natomas West Investors, a Sacramento group led by Jon Kelly, the former broadcast magnate and founder of River City Bank. Harbison-Mahony-Higgins Builders Inc. of Sacramento is the contractor.

Henwood's complex will be the third at Natomas West, which is designed for six 60,000-square-foot buildings. The initial building on the 25-acre site -- west of Interstate 5 between Gateway Oaks Drive and Venture Oaks Way -- is finished and substantially leased.

In another deal announced this week, Caltrans has agreed to lease about 35,000 square feet in the second building, Aguer said. The eight-year Caltrans lease was valued at more than $7 million.

Aguer said interest in Natomas West has been strong, even as the office leasing market has slipped in most of the Sacramento region.

In fact, construction began on the Henwood and Caltrans buildings before any leases were signed, he said.

Aguer said the recent housing boom in Natomas, especially the long-awaited opening of North Natomas, has made the region even more attractive for tenants.

In the Caltrans deal, Aguer represented Natomas West and Cornish & Carey Commercial broker Devon Atlee represented Caltrans.