Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding to build self-unloading Great Lakes barge

The following is text of a news release from Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding:

(STURGEON BAY, Wis.) — Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding has signed an agreement with VanEnkevort Tug & Barge Inc. (VTB) to construct a new self-unloading barge for transportation of bulk products throughout the Great Lakes region.

Measuring 740 feet in length (78 feet wide, 45 feet high, 37,512 dwt),the vessel will be constructed in Sturgeon Bay, Wis. VanEnkevort Tug & Barge of Escanaba, Mich., is a growing company operating three articulated tug-barges (ATBs) on the Great Lakes. This newest self-unloading barge will be environmentally friendly and delivered with the first Great Lakes ballast water treatment system meeting EPA standards.

Scheduled for completion in mid-2020, the barge will be built by Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding’s nearly 700 skilled trade workers and will generate business for partnering contractors, vendors and suppliers.

“We are pleased to see large-scale new construction that will operate on the Great Lakes being built on the Great Lakes,” said Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding’s Vice President and General Manager Todd Thayse.

"Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding’s distinguished history of building these type of vessels, the valuable investment Fincantieri has made in its facilities over the past decade, and the quality of the entire staff at the yard were all factors in our decision to work with Fincantieri on this project," said VTB President Dave Groh.

By Professional Mariner Staff