Philly Shipyard Secures More ‘Grey Hull’ Repair Work

Philly Shipyard has been awarded a contract for the repair of the Military Sealift Command roll-on/roll-off ship USNS Charlton (T-AKR-314), marking the third government repair contract since the shipyard stopped doing commercial newbuildings in 2019.

The contract was awarded by Patriot Contract Services, the ship manager working on behalf of the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC).

“This is a great win for our shipyard and demonstrates our ability to acquire substantial repair jobs going forward,” said Steinar Nerbovik, Philly Shipyard’s President and CEO. “We look forward to working with Patriot as we continue on our journey as a strong partner for government projects.”

With a displacement of 69,000 tons and a length of 950 feet, the USNS Charlton is designed to carry prepositioned U.S. Army tanks, armored personnel carriers, tractor-trailers, and other equipment and supplies to potential areas of conflict around the world. It also provides surge sealift support of remote military actions. Repair work is planned to be completed in the Q3 2021.

After delivering its final Jones Act newbuilds in 2019, Philly Shipyard made the decision to “go gray” and pursue government contracts. It first two contract awards in this area involved repair and maintenance contracts for FSS Antares and FSS Pollux, two Algol-class sister vessels.

In April 2020, it was selected to construct up to five National Security Multi-Mission vessels worth up to $1.5 billion. The NSMVs will serve as maritime training ships for the nation’s maritime academies as well provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief support in times of need. So far, Congress has approved the construction of the first four vessels.

“Patriot is excited to further support U.S. shipyards on behalf of MSC and, specifically, Philly Shipyard’s growth platform and deepening domestic expertise,” said Ryan Libhart Pereyda, Patriot’s Principal and CEO.

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