The contracts’ total price of the new tugs is $23 million. Design and construction are to start immediately, and the tugs are scheduled for completion in early 2013. Designed by Jensen Maritime Consultant, Inc., Seattle, Washington, the new tugs will be built to the highest standards of the American Bureau of Shipping, the U.S. vessel classification society. The 92-foot, 4640HP tugs are purpose-built for ship assist, escort, and firefighting services. Because of the intended area of operation, the tugs will be uniquely constructed to meet the wide range of operational parameters typical in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.

SEACOR Holdings, Inc. is a multinational company that provides a variety of marine and aviation services, primarily in the oil and gas industry. Caribbean Tugz, LLC, a new affiliate of SEACOR Holdings, is the Buyer of the new tugs and will charter them to Hovensa under a long-term bareboat charter contract. HOVENSA, the eighth largest oil refinery in the world with a capacity of over 500,000 barrels per day, is a joint venture between subsidiaries of Hess Oil Corporation and Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. Great Lakes Shipyard, a division of The Great Lakes Towing Company, operates a fullservice shipyard specializing in new construction, repairs, and modifications of all types of workboats and barges. A major $24.5 million Shipyard expansion project at its Cleveland location is now well-underway and includes a new state-of-the-art 770-ton Marine Travelift; the largest on the Great Lakes, second largest in the Western Hemisphere, and the third largest in the World. The yard facilities also include a 300-ton floating drydock. Great Lakes Shipyard is also the Rolls-Royce Great Lakes Regional Service Center. Recent deliveries include the construction of two (2) 70-foot aluminum research vessels for U.S. Geological Survey’s Great Lakes Science Center, Ann Arbor, MI.

In addition to the Shipyard, The Great Lakes Towing Company operates the largest fleet of tugs on the Great Lakes serving 40 ports and has been in continuous business since 1899. To learn more about the company and its shipyard, visit www.thegreatlakesgroup.com.