Energy company BHP Billiton has announced a $10.7 million gift to the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana in Shreveport for the development of a fitness and science campus.

The largest donation in the local YMCA's history will help finance the Red River Fitness & Natural Sciences Campus, the Shreveport Times reports. Expected to cost approximately $20 million,the 150-acre campus will include a new multi-purpose fitness facility, a fifty-meter swimming pool, and natural science education facilities. In partnership with Shreveport Little League, the YMCA also will redesign and rebuild adjacent athletic fields.

"Corporations have been very good to local nonprofits, but I don't think there’s ever been a gift this large," YMCA executive director Gary Lash told the Times, adding that the organization receives about $200,000 in donations annually. "It gives us a great amount of credibility and confidence this facility will get built."

"To reach our community and address our long-term challenges with youth and families, we need a comprehensive approach and facilities of this size and scope," said YMCA board chair Greg Morrison. "The Shreveport Little League, swimming clubs, local educators, parents, and grandparents will all have a role in ensuring the bigger success for our entire community."