Austal Awarded Contract To Construct 70M Fast Crew Boat

Austal Limited (Austal) (ASX:ASB) is pleased to announce it has entered into a contract with Caspian Marine Services Limited of Azerbaijan to construct one 70 metre Fast Crew Boat.

The contract is valued at US$34 million (approximately $44.5 million).

The 30 knot, 150 passenger catamaran shall be jointly built in Austal’s Philippines and Henderson shipyards with delivery expected in Australia in Q3 CY2016.

Caspian Marine Services Limited operates a fleet of offshore marine support vessels, serving the offshore oil and gas exploration and production industry in the Caspian Sea region. The 70 metre Fast Crew Boat shall transport crew and cargo to offshore platforms, operated by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) and British Petroleum (BP).

Austal Chief Executive Officer Andrew Bellamy said the contract is another significant milestone in Austal’s penetration into the offshore crew boat market.

“The award reinforces Austal’s continuing leadership in high speed aluminium vessel construction and is a great opportunity to further mature the integration of our supply chain between our Philippines and Henderson operations,” Mr Bellamy said.

The contract builds on the award of two 45 metre Crew Transfer Vessels for the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), currently under construction in Austal’s Philippines shipyard.

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About Austal

Austal is a global defence prime contractor and a designer and manufacturer of defence and commercial ships. For more than 25 years Austal has been a leader in the design, construction and maintenance of revolutionary ships for Governments, Navies and Ferry operators around the world. More than 250 vessels have been delivered in that time.

Ships

Defence vessels designed and built by Austal include multi-mission combatants, such as the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) for the United States Navy and military high speed vessels for transport and humanitarian relief, such as the Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) for the United States Navy and High Speed Support Vessel (HSSV) for the Royal Navy of Oman. Austal also designs, constructs, integrates and maintains an extensive range of patrol and auxiliary vessels for government agencies globally, including the Cape Class Patrol Boat Program for Australian Customs and Border Protection. Defence vessels are designed and constructed in Mobile, Alabama and in Henderson, Western Australia.

Austal has been at the forefront of the high speed ferry market since the early days of the industry. Our market leading designs of high performance aluminium vessels have long been at the heart of Austal’s research and development. Today, commercial ship construction is centred on our shipyard in Balamban, Philippines.

Systems

Austal has expertise in integrating complex systems into its ships, including ride control, ship management, and communication, sensors and weapon systems.

Support

Austal provides a wide range of support services, including through life support, integrated logistics support, vessel sustainment and systems support. These services are delivered through our global support network in the USA, Australia, Asia and the Middle East together with partner shipyards worldwide.