Crowley Christens MT West Virginia
Crowley Maritime Corp. today christened the MT West Virginia, its fourth new, Jones Act product tanker for the U.S. coastwise trade, in Philadelphia at Philly Shipyard, Inc. (PSI), the sole operating subsidiary of Philly Shipyard ASA.
The West Virginia is LNG ready, meaning it can later be converted for propulsion by liquefied natural gas (LNG). West Virginia joins its sister ships, Louisiana, Ohio and Texas, which were received by Crowley in 2015 and 2016 as the first-ever tankers to receive the American Bureau of Shipping’s (ABS) LNG-Ready Level 1 approval.
Anne Swearingen, wife of John Swearingen, senior vice president, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, performed the time-honored tradition of christening the vessel by breaking a ceremonial bottle of champagne across the West Virginia’s hull at Philly Shipyard. Marathon Petroleum will utilize the tanker under a long-term charter.
“Today represents a banner day for our company, Marathon Petroleum and Philly Shipyard as we welcome the West Virginia to our tanker fleet,” said Tom Crowley, chairman and CEO of Crowley Maritime. “The christening of this vessel, along with its sister ships, represents the best of the U.S. maritime industry – from the men and women who built her to the men and women who will operate her with great safety, integrity and high performance.”
The new tankers are based on a Hyundai Mipo Dockyards (HMD) design that incorporates numerous fuel efficiency features, flexible cargo capability and the latest regulatory requirements. At 600 feet long, West Virginia is 50,000 dead-weight-tons (dwt) and capable of carrying 330,000 barrels of product. The tanker is capable of carrying crude oil or refined petroleum products, as well as various chemical cargoes.