Building Us News

The Austal USA Board of Directors has elected Michelle Kruger as Austal USA President. She has been serving as interim president since August 2023.Kruger joined Austal USA in 2022 as the vice president of global services and support. In that role she led Austal USA’s ship repair and warranty efforts including the development of business strategy and strategic alliances. She also oversaw the stand up of Austal USA’s San Diego repair yard including the delivery of a purpose-built 9000-tonne capacity dry dock.

Austal USA earlier this month celebrated the start of construction on the first of three LCU 1710 Landing Craft Utility vessels for the U.S. Navy at the company’s Mobile, Ala. shipyard.Austal USA, a subsidiary if the Australian shipbuilding group Austal, was awarded a US$91.5 million (A$143.4 million) contract in September 2023 that includes three LCU 1710 vessels and associated support efforts.Austal CEO Paddy Gregg said the start of construction on Austal USA’s latest steel…

Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding announced it has started construction on the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering barge ever built in the U.S.The newbuild, expected to be completed in late 2023, is being built for Crowley, the largest independent operator of tank vessels in the U.S., who will operate the vessel under a long-term charter with Shell NA LNG, LLC. Bay Shipbuilding announced it won the contract to build the barge in September.The 416-foot vessel, which will have the capacity for 12…

On May 21, shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO started construction of the future USNS Robert F. Kennedy (T-AO 208), the fourth of six vessels for the U.S. Navy’s John Lewis-class fleet oiler program.Designed to transfer fuel to U.S. Navy carrier strike group ships operating at sea, the 742-feet vessels have a full load displacement of 49,850 tons, with the capacity to carry 157,000 barrels of oil, a significant dry cargo capacity, aviation capability and up to a speed of 20 knots.Due to current COVID-19 restrictions, representatives from NASSCO and the U.S.

It’s no secret that the U.S. offshore wind sector is finally about to burst into action after years of behind-the-scenes movement. With a new administration set to bolster the favorable political headwinds for the sector, establishing a strong domestic supply chain will be critical as the industry scales up.Offshore wind farm operators will need high-quality vessels ready to go, and crew transfer vessels (CTV) are vital when constructing and servicing new assets. Concurrently…

With the first 100 tons of steel cut, Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division has officially started fabrication of the Arleigh Burke-class (DDG 51) destroyer Jack H. Lucas (DDG 125).DDG 125, named to honor Capt. Jack H. Lucas, the youngest Marine and the youngest service member in World War II to receive the Medal of Honor, is the fifth of five Arleigh Burke-class destroyers HII was awarded in June 2013.As the the first “Flight III” ship in the Arleigh Burke- class of destroyers, Jack H.

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division marked the start of fabrication for the Arleigh Burke-class (DDG 51) destroyer Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) for the U.S. Navy. The start of fabrication signifies that 100 tons of steel have been cut. “This is a significant day for our shipbuilders and for the U.S. Navy as Ingalls once again begins fabrication of another destroyer,” said George Nungesser, Ingalls’ DDG 51 program manager. “We have delivered 28 of these ships to the U.S.

A private logistics company is building an export terminal at the southernmost tip of Texas in Brownsville to receive super-light crude and process it into fuel components for export. Centurion Terminals also is building its Delaware Basin Express, which includes two terminals in far West Texas to receive condensate, a very light form of crude oil, that will reach its Port of Brownsville terminal via rail, a company executive said. Both are slated to start up in the third quarter 2016. Centurion Terminals, which is not affiliated with Occidental Petroleum Corp or its subsidiary, Centurion Pipeline, said this week the company had secured a 10-year, take-or-pay contract with an undisclosed anchor shipper, enabling construction to start on the West Texas system.

Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc, which builds aircraft carriers and U.S. Navy warships, on Tuesday said it was keen to bid to build new icebreakers for the U.S. Coast Guard, after President Barack Obama pushed for quicker work on the program. The company's Ingalls shipbuilding unit, based in Pascagoula, Miss., built the newest U.S. icebreaker in the U.S. fleet, the USCGC Healy, which was delivered in November 1999. Huntington Ingalls spokesman Bill Glenn said his company had…

Ingalls Shipbuilding has begun fabrication of Destroyer Delbert D. Black (DDG 119) for the U.S. Huntington Ingalls Industries' (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division Tuesday marked the start of fabrication for the U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class (DDG 51) guided missile destroyer Delbert D. Black (DDG 119). The start of fabrication signifies that 100 tons of steel have been cut. The ship is named in honor of Delbert D. Black, who served as a gunner's mate in the U.S. Navy and was aboard the battleship USS Maryland during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The maritime industry was front and center yesterday in Washington, D.C., as “getting more oil on the water” was touted as one piece of the puzzle in ensuring future U.S. energy security, said U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz. Sec. Moniz spoke yesterday at the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2015 EIA Energy Conference at the Renaissance Downtown Hotel in Washington, DC. Building U.S. energy security via a strategic evaluation of the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve  (SPR) was central to his comments…

The Government of Canada and Irving Shipbuilding today marked the installation of the final piece of steel frame for the Assembly and Ultra Hall Production facility that will produce the Navy’s newest combat fleet starting in September 2015. The Honorable Diane Finley, Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada and the Honorable Peter MacKay, Attorney General and Minister of Justice of Canada and Minister Responsible for Nova Scotia joined Irving Shipbuilding’s executive…

Tanker operator’s hopes have been buoyed recently by a sharp upturn in crude tanker rates. Historically, tanker rates over the last two months of the year are the seasonally strongest, and this seems to be playing out this year, according to PIRA Energy Group's latest Market Recap. VLCC rates have risen to the highest levels since November 2012, supported by the end of the Far East refinery maintenance period and record levels of Chinese imports. Western fixtures are also high in November as term contract formula prices for Saudi, Kuwaiti and other Mideast grades, which are indexed to U.S. domestic sour crudes, are more than $10.00 per barrel below those for shipments to Europe and Asia. PIRA Energy Group report that on the week, U.S.

Foreign Demand For U.S. Military And Commercial Vessels Is Brisk; For Now. In the heavy shadow of possible sequestration-induced federal budget cuts, some U.S. companies are busy supplying vessels to overseas customers under the Navy’s Foreign Military Sales program and through private contracts to foreign government and firms. Demand for offshore oil vessels is strong. A big chunk of overseas business now is under the U.S. FMS, transferring defense equipment, services and training to other nations. Countries approved for the FMS pay for vessels themselves and/or with U.S. government help.

An arbitrator has certified union representation for 4,100 workers at Litton Industries Inc.'s Avondale shipyard in New Orleans, labor officials said. When Litton bought the shipyard in August, it allowed workers to sign cards indicating whether they favored a union. The Metal Trades Department of the AFL-CIO, a federation of U.S. labor organizations, said confirmation of a successful signature drive had been received. For more than 50 years, Avondale had been the only major non-union shipyard building U.S. Navy and commercial ships. In recent years, workers filed numerous reports about dangerous working conditions, but the company's previous management accused federal inspectors of assisting the union in its organizing drive.

An arbitrator certified union representation for 4,100 workers at Litton Industries Inc.'s Avondale shipyard in New Orleans. labor sources said. Avondale workers had been locked in a bitter fight with management over union representation since 1993, but when Litton bought the shipyard in August, the company agreed to remain neutral and let workers sign cards indicating they favored a union. The Metal Trades Department of the AFL-CIO, a federation of U.S. labor organizations, said confirmation of the successful signature drive had been received. "We will be asking Litton to plan for full-scale negotiations as early as possible in the new year," said a statement by John Meese, president of the national Metal Trades Department.