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EDITOR’S NOTE ur annual shipyard report comes at an appropriate, yet uncertain time for the industry. The future direction of the oil and gas markets will, to a large extent, also determine the course for domestic boat builders. That’s because the sustained rally seen in this sector over the

O course of the last 3 to 5 years came to be thanks to the so-called domestic energy boom. Neverthe- less, there are reasons for optimism despite the lowest rig count since March of 2011.

Thankfully, there are other reasons for shipyards to stay busy in the coming months. For example, the looming so-called subchapter M towboat rules will likely unleash a