American Tugboat Review – Page 23

27 Jun

Amelia R. & Rachel S. Settoon

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Tugboats & Towing

Settoon Towing of Houma, La., has taken delivery of 15 new towboats since 2010, and has another five under construction. The rapid growth of the company would be impressive any time, but more so given the dreary economy of the past four years. The company’s corporate offices are located on Highway 70, a stretch of levee-lined pavement sandwiched between the…

27 Jun

Kootenay

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Tugboats & Towing

“They say that this is the most powerful docking tug for the size,” Capt. Bill McLerie said as I boarded the 64.3-foot 5,000-hp tug Kootenay. There is a danger in using such superlatives, but with this boat it is tempting. The owner of the new tug, Samson Tug Boats Inc., is a relatively new company offering ship-docking services on the…

27 Jun

Signet Magic

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Tugboats & Towing

Signet Maritime is a strong force in the tugboat world of late. It seems that not a year goes by without two or three new boats joining its fleet of 31 tugs spread along the Gulf Coast and in Dubai. The Houston-based company has collaborated with Robert Allan Ltd. on eight ASD tugboats in the past five years. Currently Signet…

27 Jun

Kestrel

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Tugboats & Towing

Olympic Tug & Barge’s new 94-foot conventional twin-screw tugboat Kestrel went into service in Southeast Alaska in the late fall of 2012. Designed by the Louisiana firm of Entech & Associates, the boat’s mission is to deliver fuel to the settlements and camps along Alaska’s Inside Passage. The tug is paired with PM 230, a 28,000-barrel petroleum barge owned by…

27 Jun

Roger F. Wicker

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Tugboats & Towing

Blessey Marine Services Inc. continued its fleet expansion and update with the addition of Roger F. Wicker, one of several in a series of 2,000-hp towboats from Verret Shipyard. The Plaquemine, La., yard has been building towboats for Blessey for more than 30 years and has contracts for two more 85-footers and three 70-footers for delivery into 2014, according to…

08 Jul

ATB Legacy strives to be the safest and greenest as well as the biggest

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Maritime News, Tugboats & Towing

The first of Crowley Maritime’s three 750-class ATBs is working in the Gulf of Mexico on long-term charter to Marathon Petroleum. By all accounts, the 148-foot tug Legacy and its 600-foot barge 750-1 are living up to high expectations. “We’re thrilled with them,” said Rob Grune, vice president of petroleum services for Crowley. “The customer is very pleased. It’s a…

07 Jul

In its Ocean class, Crowley sets a new standard for offshore towing

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Maritime News, Tugboats & Towing

Responding to market expectations, Crowley Maritime, in conjunction with its subsidiary in Seattle, Jensen Maritime Consultants, has designed and engineered the Ocean class tugboat. Bollinger Marine Fabricators, in Amelia, La., was awarded the contract to build four of the vessels. The first, Ocean Wave, was delivered in May. Ocean Wind, Ocean Sky and Ocean Sun will follow. “Our customers are…

06 Jul

Signet’s two newest z-drives to provide LNG escort services

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Maritime News, Tugboats & Towing

Signet Maritime Corp. has taken delivery of two new identical z-drive tugs, Signet Constellation and Signet Stars & Stripes. The tugs — 100 feet long with a beam of 40 feet — provide terminal support and escort services to Angola LNG Supply Services (ALSS) in the Port of Pascagoula, Miss., and will assist LNG tankers, oil tankers and cargo vessels…

05 Jul

Arctic Titan: another extraordinary tug for Western Towboat

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Maritime News, Tugboats & Towing

While phrases such as “Go west, young man” have lost their verve, “North to Alaska” is still a vibrant one for Seattle-based Western Towboat. Anticipating steady growth in the Alaska trade, the company is close to completing its sixth Titan class ASD ocean tug, the 120-foot Arctic Titan. Western’s fleet numbers 19 tugs and its office, shipyard and dock are…

04 Jul

Change of coupling system produces a whole new class of ATBs

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review, Maritime News, Tugboats & Towing

The simple need to push smaller fuel barges with a different coupling system has prompted Reinauer Transportation to design a whole new class of tugboat. Until recently the articulated tug-barges (ATBs) built for the company had been equipped with couplers from Intercontinental Engineering. This year, the company, which is based in Staten Island, N.Y., is rolling out a new series…