Two Incat Crowther-designed CTVs ordered at Florida shipyard

St Johns Ship Building, Palatka, Florida, has been awarded two new contracts valued at about US$17M to build two crew transfer vessels (CTVs) and two aluminium cruise vessels for the US market.

St Johns Ship Building president Joe Rella declined to disclose the owner of the CTVs but did say they are based on an Incat Crowther design, with a length of 27 m. 

Mr Rella, who was appointed president of the shipyard last year, is a graduate of the US Merchant Marine Academy, and has more than four decades of commercial maritime and US Navy experience. He said the Florida boatbuilder has several other US-flag CTVs on order and under construction for the US offshore wind market.

“We are completing construction on a 30-m Incat CTV for Windea, which is the third of three vessels contracted. Delivery is expected to be completed by the end of this month,” said Mr Rella.

Certified to USCG Subchapter L, the Windea CTV will have a service speed of 25 knots and be capable of transporting 24 technicians. A large, 100-m² forward deck and a 35-m² aft deck will provide space for carriage of cargo to offshore wind installations. The vessel will have the capability of transporting a deadweight of 50 tonnes.

Propulsion will be supplied by by four Volvo D13 marine diesel engines with a quad Volvo IPS system, and wil be ready for the retrofit of a Volvo parallel hybrid system. Transfer capability is enhanced by the Incat Crowther resilient-bow technology which reduces impact forces applied to wind turbine boat landings.

Besides the Windea CTV, St Johns Shipbuilding is completing construction of the second of two 24-m Chartwell CTVs for Atlantic Wind Transfers. He anticipates the vessel will be delivered at the beginning of May.

The shipyard, which builds and repairs in steel and aluminium, was acquired by Americraft Marine in 2022.