Bay Shipbuilding has been awarded a contract to build two 155,000 barrel capacity barges and two 6,000 horsepower tugs for Kirby Corporation. The vessels are to be operated as articulated tug-barge units & will haul petroleum & chemical products domestically. The first ATB unit is scheduled for delivery in the fall of 2016 & the second unit will be delivered in the summer of 2017. Kirby Corporation, based in Houston, Texas, is the nation’s largest tank barge operator, transporting bulk liquid products throughout the Mississippi River system, the gulf intracoastal waterway, along three US coasts, & in Alaska & Hawaii. The company currently operates several ATB units built by Bay Shipbuilding in the mid-2000’s. Todd Thayse, President & General Manager of the Sturgeon Bay yard, said the latest order validates Bay Ship’s quality products & positive history. Thayse said the local firm has built 22 ATB units over the past 15 years & is now under contract for several more, allowing the ship yard to invest in its infrastructure & strengthening its backlog position. Bay Shipbuilding is a subsidiary of the Fincantieri Group, the US division of the Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri. The company has a 200 year track record of building more than 7,000 ships.
