Manitowoc Marine Group Awarded Contracts

The Manitowoc Company, Inc., the leading provider of shipbuilding and ship-repair services for the U.S. Great Lakes maritime industry, announced today that the City of New York recently awarded its Manitowoc Marine Group contracts to build three Kennedy-class ferries. The contracts represent over $124 million of business which will extend into 2004. In addition, Manitowoc Marine Group has also received a contract from Great Lakes Dredge & Dock to build a 7,100-cubic-yard dump scow for this worldwide dredging contractor.

The new Kennedy-class ferries will be 310 feet long, 70 feet wide, and are capable of transporting 4,400 passengers and 30 vehicles. The new ferries will replace three existing ferries built in 1965 and will provide year-round transportation service between Staten Island and Manhattan. The ferries will feature twin pilot houses plus state-of-the-art navigation and propulsion systems.

"This contract is an excellent example of the solid growth opportunities afforded us by our strategic acquisition program in general, and more specifically, last year's acquisition of Marinette Marine," said Terry D. Growcock, Manitowoc's president and chief executive officer. "It also continues our success in extending the reach of our shipyards beyond their traditional Great Lakes markets, while bidding and obtaining work that is ideally suited to our shipbuilding capabilities."

Tom Byrne, president of Manitowoc Marine Group, added: "The ferry contract, which is valued at approximately $120 million, will span nearly 30 months of work. We expect to build the ferries at Marinette Marine, with the first ferry scheduled for delivery in fall of 2003. Since 1944, Marinette has built more than 1,300 vessels, and this latest contract affirms their reputation for production efficiency and high-quality work. In addition, having the financial strength of The Manitowoc Company was an equally important resource in securing the bonding for this work."

The ferries, which were designed by a well-known New York naval architect, will feature "old world" nautical aesthetics that are reminiscent of the ferries that plied New York's harbors decades ago. Material procurement and basic hull fabrication work for the first ferry will soon begin at Marinette Marine.

Work on the 7,100-cubic-yard, split-hull dump scow, which will be built by Bay Shipbuilding, is expected to begin later this fall. This vessel is the 50th vessel that Manitowoc has built for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock and continues a business relationship dating back to 1906. The 63-foot by 277-foot dump scow will be constructed and ABS-certified for ocean-class service and is similar to two dump scows built by Bay Shipbuilding in 1987. Delivery of the $4.8-million vessel is scheduled for August, 2002.