STUDY: U.S.-FLAG TANK VESSEL SHORTAGE LOOMS

STUDY: U.S.-FLAG TANK VESSEL SHORTAGE LOOMS    According to a study released by the Shipbuilders Council of America, the United States could face a severe shortage of U.S.-flag tank vessels if the pace of double-hulled vessel construction doesn't increase significantly.
   The cause of the looming shortage is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which requires single-hulled vessels to be phased out of service or converted to double-hulled vessels to reduce risk of oil spills. Under OPA, the United States will lose as much as 28 percent of its existing tank vessel capacity, including 45 percent of all large, oceangoing tank barges, by the end of 2004.
   The SCA study, which takes into account existing construction and orders, projects at the current rate of double-hull construction, domestic tank vessel demand will exceed supply by 24 percent by the end of 2004, a key phase-out deadline.
   “This information should be a wakeup call,” said Allen Walker, president of SCA, based in Arlington, Va.
   The SCA said the “shortage of tank vessels would have military and commercial implications.” U.S.-flag tankers have historically been the “backbone” to move petroleum products to war zones.
   The Maritime Cabotage Task Force and the Sealift Committee of the National Defense Transportation Association expressed concern about projections of a lack of tank vessels, which would diminish the country’s ability to meet domestic transportation demands and military sealift obligations.
   In addition to double-hull construction underway, the study said that more than 500,000 deadweight tons will need to be built by 2005 to meet the growing demand for domestic waterborne transport of petroleum products. That could equate to the construction of about 25 20,000 deadweight tank barges over the next three years, the study said.
   “While there has been an increase in double-hull construction, construction falls far short of capacity demands in the coming years,” the SCA said. “Operators waiting until the eleventh hour to order ships could find insufficient shipyard capacity to meet new building demand — a problem that could be more acute as construction in the offshore and dry cargo segments develops.”