Kirby orders 29 extra tank barges

   Kirby Corp. said Monday that it has signed an agreement to order an additional 29 new inland tank barges with 30,000-barrel capacity this year.
   Joe Pyne, Kirby’s chairman and chief executive officer, said the additional barges “will help to meet the additional volume requirements driven by strong and expanding movements of crude oil and natural gas condensate, as well as new demand from expansions in the petrochemical and refining industries.”
   Kirby said 18 of the barges are being acquired through the assumption of shipyard construction contracts from another inland tank barge operator, and 11 are new orders placed by Kirby. Based on current commitments, steel prices and projected delivery schedules, the cost of the 29 inland tank barges is approximately $81 million.
   The construction of the 29 inland tank barges are in addition to the previously announced construction during 2014 of 37 inland tank barges with a total capacity of 390,000 barrels. In addition, the company said about $45 million will be made in progress payments on the construction of the 185,000-barrel coastal articulated tank barge and tugboat unit announced in January, which will be delivered in 2015.
   Kirby, based in Houston, Texas, is the nation’s largest domestic tank barge operator.