VMS To Christen Halter-Built ATB

Crowley Maritime's Vessel Management Services, Inc., will christen the first of four Articulated Tug-Barge (ATB) tank vessels this year in New Orleans on Thursday, April 25. The vessels to be christened are the 9,280-hp tug Sea Reliance and the 155,000-barrel barge 550-1. Intrepid Ship Management, a subsidiary of Marine Transport Lines, will charter the Halter Marine-built ATB from Vessel Management Services and operate it. Marine Transport is a Crowley subsidiary and part of its Contract services segment. "We are looking forward to christening and putting these exceptional new vessels into service for our customer," said Tom Crowley Jr., Chairman, President and CEO of Crowley Maritime. "The Sea Reliance and barge 550-1 have many advanced design features that make them very safe to operate and very efficient when transferring product." "The successful delivery of these two units is another tribute to the fine work done by the hard working men and women at Halter," said Anil Raj, Chief Operating Officer of Halter. "We are pleased that Vessel Management Services and Crowley had the confidence to give us the opportunity to help design and build these. We are getting the second units ready for delivery soon." The ATB tank vessel was jointly designed by Vessel Management Services and Halter Marine to incorporate the latest advances in environmental and safety while addressing increased efficiencies in hose handling, anchoring, mooring, discharge and loading of product. The barge 550-1 was built at Halter's Port Bienville shipyard in Pearlington, Miss., and the Sea Reliance at its Moss Point Marine shipyard, in Escatawpa, Miss. Vessel Management Services will take delivery of an additional tug and barge from Halter and two tugs and two barges from The Manitowoc Company later this year. Each of the tugs and barges is being built to similar performance specifications as the Sea Reliance and barge 550-1. The 550-1 is double hulled and the tug is double sided for maximum environmental protection and safety. The barge, built, documented and maintained to the requirements of American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) SafeHull, has an inert gas system as well as an enhanced cargo system and a fully redundant ballast system.