First NSMV Empire State Delivered

Eric Haun, Editor

Eric Haun is editor of Marine News. He has covered the commercial maritime and...

September 8, 2023

(Photo: Philly Shipyard)

Philly Shipyard on Friday delivered Empire State, the lead vessel in a series of five new training ships being built to serve America's state maritime academies. Delivered to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD) under its National Security Multi-Mission Vessel (NSMV) program, Empire State will serve SUNY Maritime College.

Scheduled to be delivered through 2026, each of the five purpose-built NSMVs will feature instructional spaces, a full training bridge and space for up to 600 cadets. In addition, each ship features modern hospital facilities, a helicopter pad and the ability to accommodate up to 1,000 people in times of humanitarian need. The NSMVs can also provide roll-on/roll-off and container storage capacity for use during disaster relief missions.

"We are beyond proud to deliver the Empire State today, our first government newbuild in the history of Philly Shipyard," said Steinar Nerbovik, president and CEO of Philly Shipyard. "We are honored to be trusted with this important project, and on behalf of all of our skilled workers, we are confident that the Empire State will provide a safe, reliable and state-of-the-art training platform for generations of future mariners."

In 2019, MARAD awarded TOTE Services a contract to be the Vessel Construction Manager (VCM) for the NSMV program, and Philly Shipyard secured the contract to build the first two vessels in 2020. The next two vessels in the NSMV program were ordered in 2021, followed by the fifth and final vessel in 2022.

The government sponsored shipbuilding program is the U.S.' first to utilize the VCM model, which places the responsibility for the selection and oversight of the shipyard on a government contractor that utilizes commercial best practices to manage the project.

"Today's delivery of the Empire State is a historic moment for the American maritime industry made possible by the U.S. government’s investments in our nation's industrial base," said TOTE Services president Jeff Dixon. "These investments are on full display as we look to build the next generation of domestic mariner training ships more cost effectively – and on schedule – using commercial innovation and best practices. We must also give credit to the dedicated and skilled workers at Philly Shipyard, whose tireless efforts in the face of unprecedented challenges helped make this milestone possible."

The second vessel of the NSMV series, Patriot State, is destined for the Massachusetts Maritime Academy and scheduled for delivery in 2024. Philly Shipyard recently laid the keel for State of Maine (Maine Maritime Academy) and cut first steel for Lone Star State (Texas A&M Maritime Academy), and the yard is slated to begin construction for the fifth NSMV (California Maritime Academy) later this year.