New Barge Builder Opens in Texas

SeaBuilders, LLC said it is accepting orders for the first quarter of 2008 to construct 30,000 barrel and 60,000 barrel oil barges. The company also announced that it has received an initial $3 million round of funding from Harbor Bunkering Corporation of Puerto Rico. SeaBuilders shipyard opened to provide capacity, as well as a new, more efficient approach to barge building, according to the company. SeaBuilders is expecting to leverage its Lean Manufacturing Process to build barges faster, more efficiently and more cost effectively. "We are delighted to offer the industry a solution — SeaBuilders is available to now take orders and by leveraging the Lean Manufacturing Process, we will be able to meet the pressing demands of industry to come into compliance to meet the pending requirements under the Oil Pollution Act of '90,” said Eric Rivera, Executive Vice President of SeaBuilders. SeaBuilders received $3 million in funding from Harbor Bunkering Corporation of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Harbor Bunkering is a fuel bunkering companies in the Caribbean. "SeaBuilders is the next generation of barge building. They are a company built from the ground up by an experienced team driven to meeting the industries' demands," said Alfredo Santaella Suarez, CEO of Harbor Bunkering. SeaBuilders shipyard is located in Corpus Christi, Texas. The SeaBuilders' focus will be to focus on the development of 30,000 barrel barges (the C5 Series) and 60,000 barrel barges (the C10 Series). "While the marine and oil industry have worked to meet the demands for the larger barges and tankers, the barge building industry has pent up demand for the smaller sized barges with the 2015 deadline looming," said Jack Walsh, Executive Vice President. "SeaBuilders will play a critical role in the marine and oil industries meeting the timetable with high quality barges that are delivered on time and on budget," added Rivera.