Pierre Mottet, of Belgium’s Ion Beam Applications announced the company will locate its U.S. headquarters in Jacksonville. The announcement came at the dedication of the the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute Friday. IBA developed the proton therapy system housed in the 98,000 square foot UFPTI facility at 2015 North Jefferson St., which opened this summer. Proton therapy produces and aims a proton beam targeting tumors to treat many kinds of cancer. The system is one of the most complex medical systems in the world today, according to Mottet, who also said Jacksonville made the company feel right at home. “We want to make the name of Jacksonville shine in the fight against cancer,” he said, adding the economic impact of the company’s location here could potentially be $1 billion. The University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute is one of only five of its kind in the U.S. and the only one in Florida. Dr. C. Craig Tisher, dean of the College of Medicine UF; Stuart Klein, executive director of UFPTI; Mayor John Peyton; Douglas Barrett, senior vice president Health Affairs UF; Pierre Mottet, CEO of IBA; Dr. Nancy Price Mendenhall, medical director of UFPTI; UF President J. Bernard Machen; and Russell B. Newton, Jr., chairman of the Timucuan Asset Management, Inc. all spoke at the ribbon cutting ceremony.