Defense Appropriations Bill Includes $1 Bln for US Icebreaker
The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee’s FY2017 Defense Appropriations Bill has included $1 billion in funding to accelerate construction of a new polar icebreaker for the U.S. Coast Guard, reported Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.). Cochran, who chairs the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said the bill recommends $1 billion in Navy shipbuilding funds to procure the first U.S. Coast Guard-operated icebreaker in more than 25 years. Congress last funded a new icebreaker in the FY1990 Defense Appropriations Act. The U.S.
The OPC Sweepstakes: Three for the Money
In February, the U.S. Coast Guard chose three finalists to design its new Offshore Patrol Cutters, with awards to Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport, La., Eastern Shipbuilding Group in Panama City, Fla. and General Dynamics’ Bath Iron Works in Maine. Each company was awarded a Phase I design contract valued at between $21 million and $22 million. At the end of the 18-month Preliminary and Contract Design Phase I, the Coast Guard will choose one company’s team for a Phase II Detailed Design and Construction contract for the lead OPC.
BIW Joins USCG Cutter Contract Contending Trio
U.S. Senators Susan Collins, a senior member of the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, have announced that Bath Iron Works (BIW) has been awarded a preliminary design contract for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) worth more than $21 million. BIW is now one of three shipyards in contention for the final contract. “With its skilled workforce and an outstanding record of designing, building…
BIW Secures More Navy DDG-1000 Funding
After months of negotiations, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Sean Stackley, called Senator Susan Collins to tell her that the U.S. Navy and General Dynamics-Bath Iron Works (BIW) have reached an agreement for the second and third DDG-1000 that will be built in Bath. Senator Susan Collins, a member of both the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, has always been a stalwart supporter of BIW and has fought to secure appropriate funding for the DDG-1000 program. For many months, she has actively worked to encourage the Navy to finalize these contracts in an effort to secure a steady workload at BIW.
