While the legislation aims to revitalise a sagging American shipbuilding base to construct new US-flag oceangoing ships, are there opportunities to rebuild an aging Jones Act platform supply vessel fleet, too?
With the Trump Administration and Congress fully behind revitalising American shipbuilding, one of the sectors that could benefit is the aging fleet of US-flag platform supply vessels (PSVs).
“The average age of the active fleet is more than 14 years old,” pointed out Clarksons Platou (Offshore) marine assets lead, Tyler Boje.
But Mr Boje said several hurdles exist to renewing the Jones Act-compliant offshore support vessel (OSV) fleet. During a session at IPF 2025, Virginia Beach, Virginia on 30 April, he said high newbuilding prices, limited available US shipyard capacity, and protracted build times that average more than three years are among the biggest of these.
On the commercial side, term rates for dynamically positioned class-2 PSVs are not as good as they appear either. “The current term rates have generally surpassed the previous peak levels observed in 2013 but without accounting for inflation,” he said.
Dwindling shipyard capacity
Since the last building boom on the US Gulf Coast, shipyard capacity to build high-spec PSVs has also atrophied and consolidated, with ownership now resting in the hands of fewer companies. Mr Boje estimated Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) shipyards has built 136, or 63%, of the 217 DP2-class PSVs in the Jones Act fleet. It also built and operates ECO Edison, the first US-flag service operations vessel (SOV) for the US offshore wind market, and is building another, ECO LIberty.
“The SHIPS Act presents a fantastic opportunity”
One of the world’s largest OSV owners, ECO, owned by the Chouest family, controls a large chunk of the shipbuilding and repair capacity on the US Gulf Coast through its own shipyards and those of Bollinger Shipyards. ECO has two shipyards in Louisiana, one in Mississippi and one in Florida, as well as one in Brazil, while Bollinger Shipyards has 10 shipyards in Louisiana and Mississippi. Bollinger counts the US Navy, Coast Guard and Army among its best customers.
In May it received approval from the US Coast Guard to begin full production on the US Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (PSC) programme. The first heavy polar icebreaker in the class will be delivered in May 2030.
Beyond ECO and Bollinger, the other top five builders that have constructed DP2-class PSVs are Master Boat Builders, Coden, Alabama, Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Panama City, Florida and Thoma-Sea, Houma, Louisiana.
