Castle achieves success through family, hard work, and honesty
Founded in 1999 by Mike Castle, Sr. and originally called Progressive Pipeline, the company now known by the family name Castle since 2021, has become a major player in the energy sector. Castle builds infrastructure, working in the oil and gas arenas, as well as on the renewable energy side.
Just three years after its founding, the company secured its first multi-million dollar contract and has continued on a trajectory of success. Having started out building underground pipelines that carry oil, gas and various other products depending on the needs of the client, in the past four years Castle has entered the renewable energy market, consisting of solar and wind farm construction and various environmental work. The company also performs maintenance and integrity work on gas lines as well as facility construction. Castle’s operations consists of several divisions, each in place specifically to meet those aforementioned needs: Pipeline, Integrity Group, Facility Group, Directional Drilling, Renewable Energy and Environmental Reclamation. Its’ client base mainly consists of publicly-traded companies across the country.
Blake Granados, Castle’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations, also happens to be the granddaughter of founder, Mike Castle, Sr. and daughter of current president/CEO, Mike Castle, Jr., a testament to the company’s touting itself as a family company. “Plus, we felt like we were limiting ourselves somewhat with the word ‘pipeline’ in our name because we were doing so much other kind of work as we grew,” noted Granados.
Relocating two of its operations to Meridian in 2008, the company actually started in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Granados explained.
“Our corporate office is in downtown Meridian and we also have a second facility about 15 minutes away where our operations folks work which has a full shop on location, since we own a good deal of our equipment,” said Granados. The company completely renovated the three-story corporate office downtown about four years ago and it has been called the “coolest building in town” by Bill Hannah, President/CEO of the East Mississippi Business Development Corporation in Meridian.
Mike Castle, Sr. had worked in pipeline construction most of his adult life before founding his own company, said Granados. “And my dad, Mike, Jr., started helping my grandfather when he was around 13 years old during the summer. My grandfather and dad actually started from the bottom of the industry to build what we have today and it’s a huge source of pride to us here at Castle. It’s funny and ironic that some of the companies they worked for before going out on their own are now some of our competitors,” she said.
According to Granados, Castle has projects all over the country and at any given time, can employ around 1000 seasonal workers. “We’re currently licensed in 38 states and do all of our work within the U.S. We also have additional offices in Port Allen, Louisiana, just out of Baton Rouge, as well as offices in Houston and Monahans, Texas,” she said.
Castle, Sr. remains as a board member at the company he founded, said Granados. “And, since I grew up around such innovative and successful men like my grandfather and father, it was only a natural fit for me to come work here eight years ago and start our marketing department,” she added. “I take a great deal of pride in our family and the legacy of Castle as a company, so I wouldn’t dream of working anywhere else.”
Castle is one of the few family/privately owned companies in the nation in the energy field, noted Granados. “Which only adds to the pride we all feel here.”
Looking ahead, Castle is set up for growth and is always looking for the next big thing in their industry, said Granados. “Our core values here are: integrity, family, hard work and safety,” she said. “We take all four very seriously and with those in place and at the forefront of everything we do as a company, we’ll continue to succeed and do well. Castle certainly has expansion plans in place, as well, so the future will be exciting to see.”
“We believe in the American dream because we’re living it,” the company’s website states. This is an apt and accurate summary of a true Mississippi business success story that is still in the process of being written.