Bipartisan legislation aimed at revitalizing the United States’ shipbuilding industry and maritime sector may soon be introduced as a bill. As of this writing, the Ships for America Act is a 200-page draft that has yet to be formally submitted into the legislative branch, though the bill has broad bipartisan support. Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Representative Mike Waltz (R-FL) have…

Tacoma-based work-boat builder Silverback Marine will deliver a truckable, twin-azimuth-drive tugboat in 2025 to an as-of-yet undisclosed branch of the Department of Defense. The truckable tug will be just under 26 feet, with a beam of 14 feet, five inches and a draft of 3 feet, 4 inches. Silverback Marine’s goal was to create a tug that can be easily…

Blakeley BoatWorks shipyard in Mobile, Al., has delivered its sixth 70-foot-long, 28-foot-wide pushboat to Cooper Marine’s Louisiana operations. Blakeley completed and delivered the Farrell & Norton-designed Hull 107, formally named M/V Claire Ellen, in October 2024. The towboat is fully compliant with the latest United States Coast Guard Subchapter M regulatory requirements. The Blakeley towboat is powered by two Caterpillar…

What’s being called the world’s fastest and longest-range electric vessel will soon go into ferry service on the deep-blue, mountain-ringed waters of Lake Tahoe. The P-12 from Swedish-based company Candela is an almost 40-foot, 30-passenger ferry capable of reaching 25 knots with a range of 40 nautical miles. The vessel will provide north-south service across Lake Tahoe’s 21.75-mile length. Ferry operator FlyTahoe said…

In late November 2024, Military Sealift Command (MSC) said it would take 17 ships offline in order to ease pressure on civilian mariners. Efforts are also underway to improve mariner recruiting and retention. In August 2024, MSC said that a lack of qualified mariners prompted the command to draft plans to sideline some 13 percent of its approximately 125 vessels.…

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded nearly $300 million in ferry grants to support 18 projects in 14 states, with nearly two-thirds of all funding going to support projects in Alaska. The awards, announced earlier this fall, represent funding from three different grant programs, all of which allocate money from the federal infrastructure bill passed by the U.S. Congress…

Members of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy community gathered on Oct. 11 to celebrate the arrival of the national security multi-mission vessel (NSMV) Patriot State, which will serve as its new training ship. Patriot State is the second of five NSMVs ordered by the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd) to enter service. The first, Empire State, arrived at the State University of…
Over the last decade or two, Blount Boats has delivered steel-hulled ferries and tugboats as well as aluminum-sided catamarans for the offshore wind industry. Going back even further, the shipyard has delivered offshore supply vessels, dinner cruisers, small cruise ships and vehicle ferries. Now in its 75th year in operation, the yard’s long history in boatbuilding along Narragansett Bay in…
Bisso Towboat Co. has added another azimuthing stern drive (ASD) tugboat to its Lower Mississippi River ship-assist fleet with the delivery of the 100-by-38-foot Mr. Brian from Main Iron Works. The 5,000-hp tugboat, named for Brian Cyprowski, the company’s longtime vice president for operations, is based near its home office in Luling, La. The tug primarily performs ship-assist work at…
Gulf LNG Tugs, a joint venture comprised of Moran Towing, Bay-Houston Towing and Suderman & Young Towing, has ordered four new low-emission tugs from two Gulf Coast shipyards to support a new liquefied natural gas export terminal. Master Boat Builders of Coden, Ala., will build two of the Robert Allan Ltd. RApport 2800-series tugs, and Sterling Shipyard of Port Neches,…