Government awards $1.96b to maintain sealift ships

The Department of Transportation has awarded the funds to seven separate firms for the purpose of maintaining 48 ships in MarAd’s National Defense Reserve Fleet over the next eight years.    The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded contracts with a value of $1.96 billion to crew and maintain 48 vessels in the Maritime Administration’s National Defense Reserve Fleet Vessels over an eight year period.
   The contracts are funded by the Department of Defense’s National Defense Sealift Fund.
   The 18 contracts awarded to seven U.S. maritime firms total $953.5 million for the 4-year base contract which runs through January 2020. The contracts also include two, 2-year options bringing the total award value to $1.96 billion.
   The contracts were awarded to companies that offered the best value to the government. These seven companies are responsible for maintaining the ships in good mechanical condition and ensuring that crews are available to operate them when needed.
   Forty-six of the vessels are part of the Department of Transportation’s Ready Reserve Force, a fleet managed by MarAd that provides rapid mass movement of Department of Defense equipment and supplies to support the military. They can also be used to respond to national and humanitarian emergencies. The other two vessels are used to support Missile Defense Agency operations.
   The contracts were awarded to:
     • Crowley Technical Management, Inc., Jacksonville, Fla. (4 vessels, $149.8 million);
     • Keystone Shipping Services, Bala Cynwyd, Penn. (11 vessels, $411.6 million);
     • Matson Navigation Company, Inc., Oakland, Calif. (3 vessels, $174.6 million);
     • Ocean Duchess, Inc. Houston, Texas. (8 vessels, $342.3 million);
     • Pacific-Gulf Marine, Corp., Gretna, La. (6 vessels, $194.3 million);
     • Patriot Contract Services, LLC, Concord, Calif. (7 vessels, $227.1 million);
     • And Tote Services, Inc., Jacksonville, Fla. (9 vessels, $461.2 million).