BAE Systems Completes American Phoenix Tanker (Video)
BAE Systems in Mobile, Alabama joined with Mid Ocean Tanker Company (MOTC) to complete and commission the American Phoenix, a U.S.-flagged, Jones Act-qualified chemical tanker. Measuring 616 feet long and 105 feet wide, the American Phoenix is the largest vessel ever built and launched in the State of Alabama. It has a laden draft of 36 feet and a cargo capacity of 49,000 dwt.
BAE Systems was contracted to complete construction of the American Phoenix and prepare it for use. The vessel is owned by MOTC, a joint venture between Mid Ocean Marine and private equity firm Alterna Capital Partners. Sea trials and delivery are scheduled to occur this month. The vessel will conduct trade initially in the Gulf of Mexico.
“Completion and delivery of the American Phoenix is a major event for shipbuilding in the Mobile area,” said Vic Rhoades, director and general manager of BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards Alabama. “In total, the construction of this vessel has created more than 150 full-time jobs and has helped us to secure follow-on new construction opportunities.”
The American Phoenix build also demonstrates BAE Systems’ continued growth in the commercial shipbuilding market. The Mobile yard has already begun its next project, which is to build an 8,500 cubic yard capacity trailing suction hopper dredge for Weeks Marine, Inc. That vessel, named MV Magdalen, is scheduled to be finished in 2014. When complete, it will measure 340 feet long and 79 feet wide, with a draft of 27 feet.
Background
Operating management of the American Phoenix will be performed by Seabulk Tankers, a division of Seacor Holdings, one of the most experienced operators in the U.S. Jones Act trades. The highly experienced crew are respectively members of the American Maritime Officers Union and the Seafarers International Union.
The American Phoenix is the newest vessel to come from the BAE Systems Mobile shipyard, which has a rich history of ship construction and repair. The yard launched its first new construction vessel, the steam powered ship Banago, on September 19, 1918. The Banago, built under the U. S. Shipping Board's World War I emergency shipbuilding program, grossed 2,551 tons and had a wooden hull. More than nine decades later, the American Phoenix is more than six times the size of the Banago and is one of the most modern and sophisticated product tankers at sea today.
Along with the hundreds of BAE Systems employees and the MOTC team, several local Mobile and Gulf Coast companies were invaluable in the completion of this project. Alternative Marine Technologies, ABS, US Coatings, MMIF, F & S Superb Marine, LES, Diamond Scaffolding, Insulation Inc, Jamestown Metal and Machinery, L-3 Maritime Systems, R+S Stolze, MAK, International Paint, Sea Technology, Bisso Marine Company, Houston Holloway, Universal Services, Offshore Inland, Resolve Engineering and Fire Protection Services all played a significant part in completing the American Phoenix.
