Rescued by the Welder’s Whip and Anchored by the Painter’s Spray Gun

As a vessel construction manager with extended building experience in both the U.S. and South Korea, more than several opportunities have landed on our desks as Private Equity and Venture Capital analyze tanker tonnage and construction in the domestic trades. With the understanding these requests are based upon the current Persian Gulf and Venezuela issues driving that market we should also pay attention to the 2027 Maritime budget that allocates $1.5 trillion dollars for overall National Security and $65.8 billion set aside for U.S. Navy Shipbuilding.  

Our domestic fleet is also tagged “National Security” and there is no doubt a surge will occur in U.S. Gulf petroleum movements.  The world is grasping at where and how to move product ranging from crude to jet fuel and you can bet “National Security” will be the tag line. Our domestic oil and chemical markets are not exempt from those concerns. We are deep into the global debate whether it be Persian Gulf, U.S. Gulf, Venezuela or Northwest passage. Markets and energy aside, the rhetoric is now based upon an aggressive movement to reestablish U.S Shipbuilding.

The U.S. chaos builds upon the escalating cost of gasoline products. The spike has reached into chemical trades both wet and dry, industrial manufacturing, steel and household goods. As Amtech, we recently traded caustic soda to the largest Aluminum Smelter in Saudi Arabia on one of our managed chemical ships trapped in the Persian Gulf. Primarily used in the Bayer Process to refine bauxite ore into alumina, caustic soda acts as a solvent to dissolve aluminum-bearing minerals at high temperatures, separating them from impurities like iron oxide and the Saudi factory was in need of caustic soda to manage the smelter. Recent attacks by Iranian drones damaged the facility and production stopped. Gas prices aside, watch the effect on aluminum costs with this massive closure.
The short story is not all about energy.

A Wakeup Call

The wakeup call should concentrate not only on the inflated cost of crude oil but also the downstream effect on shipping’s industry partners and manufacturing. One of the single geopolitical inflationary effects will be shipbuilding itself. We are seeing the rush to execute building contracts in the Far East yards in an attempt to get ahead of the costs coming down the road. With six ships drydocking in South Korea during 2026, Amtech has already experienced inflated costs with the first vessel of over 35% due to energy and tariffs.

Look again at the aluminum example above when analyzing new U.S. construction costs. The U.S. Department of Transportation and Marad announced on April 6, 2026, $657 million in FY 2026 competitive grants to improve ferry infrastructure, enhance service in rural areas, and reduce emissions. Administered by the FTA, the funding supports new vessel construction, terminal upgrades, and expanded routes to improve accessibility, with applications open through May 11, 2026. The lesson is “timing is everything” and imagine investing in this market with escalating costs of aluminum affecting most if not all small ferry construction. Take that thought a “Maga” step forward and determine how the U.S. would move towards domestic aluminum manufacturing and even further downstream to determine how many coastwise registered vessels can properly distribute caustic soda, bauxite or other new commodities needed to rebuild our infrastructure.

The problem goes well beyond the U.S Navy.

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• It is the fact that both State and Federal governments never understood the importance of shipping and shipbuilding. And with that never properly funded it through several previous Administrations to match the global capability. Long story short, our ability to compete with China is long gone.  

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All images courtesy Amtech

Shipbuilding Capacity

The industry analysis concerning the ferry grants to date? Will the $657 million actually be viewed as a “subsidy” in a coastwise registered market that has never accepted a subsidy for construction? A question that was debated during development of the “Ships Act” and a question that should be debated.

The simple truth is U.S. domestic shipbuilding costs will increase and not decrease in the short term.  With the current price levels for ATB tank barge or MR tankers being quoted, commercial new construction contracts and available drydock slots will “pause”.  
We emphasize “commercial” simply because the U.S government is rapidly announcing new multiple USCG ice breaker contracts, US Navy LSM construction, the Navy rushing to autonomous logistics, RFPs for support vessel designs, and expedited nuclear submarine contracts for modules and hulls. These are programs and budget funding that will eat up available US shipbuilding capacity and labor faster than a rescue dog attacks his first bowl of kibble at the new foster home.
Every response to the politically generated “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance” has developed into a rush to announce “shipyards of the future” at new Greenfield locations, robotics and software programs updating existing shipyards, and software or AI promises from every carpetbagger capable of developing a pitch book. There are a few shipyard locations and discussions that show promise and we hope they succeed. That said, the time needed to accomplish this goal and also train an experienced workforce, is measured in decades no matter how much money you throw at it.  

Listen to the domestic ATB owners, the inland barge operators and existing tanker owners. They are investigating life extension of current operating tonnage to continue serving the markets. They are correct and it reminds us of the New York Subway alert:  WATCH THE GAP.

The answer to immediately developing a work force and rebuild U.S. Ship Construction starts at the repair yards as it has at every foreign yard we have recently invited into our backyard. Our energy and chemicals move by ATB and there are no government programs that support that effort.  

Recent Projects

Amtech recently delivered the ATB Battery Park & MAM 141 from Gulf Marine Repair in Tampa, Florida. A major conversion and life extension project comparing a conversion cost of a new 155,000 BBL Chemical barge and a 6,000 hp tug to rebuilding and converting existing tonnage of the same size and capability.  

Owners purchased two assets, 18 years of age with coastwise privileges. Both units purchased while in layup, not operational and in a condition requiring major repairs.  The project was not only positioned to repair and recover expired Class and Flag certificates, it was developed to convert the ATB to trade in new chemical markets and establish a 15-year life extension to support the investment and business model. New materials, tank coatings, navigational AI, equipment and machinery were introduced and integrated into the existing design to establish the carriage of cargo beyond petroleum products and into chemicals while increasing the performance of the tug & barge with new technology.  

The project introduced Advanced Polymers Coatings Marine Line 784 chosen for application in the barge cargo tanks. A superior, high-performance polymer cargo tank coating, heat cured to a tightly knit, virtually impermeable structure, to provide superior cargo protection for chemical, product, parcel and barge tankers. The lining provides the highest chemical resistance of all coatings and has been referred to as ‘liquid stainless steel’. It has a superior resistance to acids, alkalis and solvents with a maximum versatility to carry CPPs, PFADs, Bio Fuels and Methanol. The coating has been applied worldwide in over 600 vessels. Amtech has been trained in coating application and inspection.

What was more important to the coating decision is the fact it is the first application of the Marine Line 784 product in the United States. The detailed requirements of the cargo tank preparation and coating application were completed by Anchor Sandblasting and Painting. The investment in the coating and our confidence in Anchor Sandblasting and Painting was one of the lead decisions in the project.

The decision also exposes our global technology position as the 600 vessels have been completed in foreign locations. Amtech applying one of the first polymer coatings in 2016 in South Korea and now this project being the first completed in the United States. Add the fact that Advanced Polymer Coatings is a U.S. born and bred company and you may understand the maritime problem is not our lack of technology nor is it the capability of our commercial or Naval shipyards.
It is the fact that both State and Federal governments never understood the importance of shipping and shipbuilding. And with that never properly funded it through several previous Administrations to match the global capability. Long story short, our ability to compete with China is long gone.  

The MAM 141 and Battery Park conversion upgrades continued with a redesigned stainless steel cargo system and pumps from ERL. Another U.S based company providing a technically advanced product. The wheel house and navigation were upgraded to full ECDIS capability and included the installation of the Quartermaster SmartMast Maritime Awareness system, providing the bridge resource team real time data, an AI radio frequency interface through Starlink with extended visual camera capability up to 10 miles with a 31x zoom. And yes, the manufacturer is U.S. based also. Main engines, gearboxes, generators, cargo pumps and machinery were all rebuilt. Cabins and Public spaces updated and the highest grade of hull coatings and deck coatings applied. The life extension left no stone unturned including the renewal of over 750,000 pounds of steel. All of which was completed in a U.S. shipyard.

Her first cargo fixed, SIRE completed without comment and the ATB has been turned over to Savage Marine Management as the operator. Let’s return to the original concept of the project. New construction cost compared to conversion and life extension, look at the photographs. The Tug and barge were delivered at nearly 1/3rd the cost of the new construction estimate and valued at completion well above the cost to complete the project. 

Time to fill the gap.

 All images courtesy Amtech