Crowley Christens Barge 455-2 at Gunderson Marine
The Second of Three Heavy Lift 455 Series Deck Barges to be Delivered this Year in Support of the Offshore Energy Industry
(Portland, Ore.; July 30, 2007) – Crowley Maritime Corporation Saturday christened and launched barge 455-2, the second of three Heavy Lift 455 series flat-deck barges that will be built and delivered to Crowley this year by Gunderson Marine in Portland, Ore. The three 400-foot by 105-foot-wide deck barges are being built to handle project work for the offshore energy industry – primarily in the Gulf of Mexico. The addition of these vessels helps to expand and keep current Crowley’s fleet for customers of the company’s marine services business segment.
During the ceremony held Saturday at Gunderson on Northwest Front Avenue, Karen Harland, the wife of Bruce Harland, vice president of Crowley’s Alaska operations, christened the barge.
“We are pleased to offer the 455-2 into service in support of our customers doing offshore project work,” said Tom Crowley, Jr., chairman, president and CEO. “The introduction of this new vessel is further evidence of our commitment to our customers who have a need for new, large, high-capacity barges; to the Jones Act and our U.S. shipbuilding partners, and to our own core values, one of which is to reinvest profits back into the business to ensure the company’s durability.”
Crowley’s new Heavy Lift 455 series barges with 25-foot side shells provide both the capacity and deck strength needed to accommodate the favored larger units for offshore exploration and development. The barges offer increased stability for loads up to 4,200 pounds per square foot in order to carry the larger offshore structures now being planned and engineered for deepwater projects. The barges are also suitable for use in other regions, including Alaska, where Crowley has regularly performed summer sealifts to the North Slope.
Crowley expects to formally take delivery of barge 455-2 from the shipyard in about 10 days, and plans to receive the third barge in the series later this year. The first barge in the series – the Marty J – was christened and launched in January.
Jacksonville-based Crowley Maritime Corporation, founded in San Francisco in 1892, is primarily a family and employee-owned company that provides diversified transportation and logistics services in domestic and international markets by means of five operating lines of business: Liner Services; Logistics Services; Petroleum Services, Marine Services and Technical Services. Other services provided within these business lines include contract towing and transportation; ship assist and escort; energy support; salvage and emergency response; vessel management, and petroleum and chemical transportation, distribution and sales. Additional information about Crowley its subsidiaries and business units may be found on the Internet at www.crowley.com.
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