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will be used to fund the construction of 53 new ships at rine, the Coast Guard’s Fast Response Cutter, allow the

Chinese shipyards, replacing over 100 ships scrapped by shipyards to take advantage of economic order quantities,

COSCO within the past two years, according to the agree- plan hires, train workers for the right positions, and pursue ment. Since its foundation in 1994, China Exim has fund- overall ef? cient business practices. We need these program- ed 9,637 ships with a total contract value of $197.7Bn. matic and budgetary assurances Congress can provide to

That is what U.S. shipyards are up against. further future investments in our Navy and Coast Guard.

What one thing would propel U.S. shipbuilding to a What are Shipyards excelling at in today’s economy, new high, even from the heady levels and backlogs as well as preparing for the future markets?

that we have seen recently?

U.S. shipyards are building the most complex and so-

Certain markets are strong right now, but you are cor- phisticated Navy and Coast Guard vessels in the world. rect to think that the industry is concerned with the future. In addition, we continue to deliver approximately 1,300

Some opportunities on the horizon include opening new commercial vessels each year, as well as innovate to become areas of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) to offshore world leaders in building vessels powered by LNG. This is oil and gas exploration. Congress is currently considering a very exciting time in that regard. Additionally, shipyards opening portions of the Atlantic coast, east Gulf coast and are diversifying product lines, investing in new technolo- the Arctic. Jones Act vessels would support those activities, gies, and partnering with foreign engineering and ship- as the fruits of those activities would directly and positively yard ? rms. All of this is evidence that the U.S. shipyard impact U.S. shipbuilders and repairers. Farther out on the industry is positioning itself well to weather the peaks and horizon, but de? nitely coming, is offshore wind. Plagued valleys inherent to the business. Shipyards participating in by regulatory hurdles and complexities, we do expect the government programs are always incorporating the latest ? rst farms to come online in the coming years. In addi- research into ship procurement and making generational tion, the non-contiguous ? eets will still have needs to re- leaps in capabilities. The ships that enter our naval ? eet are capitalize long-term and we will service that market. On unrivaled in the world. And in today’s economy, America’s the government side, again, I would return to the theme shipyards keep these assets performing by repairing, over- of predictability and stability surrounding the budget and hauling, converting, and modernizing ships and subma- procurement processes. Those government programs in rines in order to maximize their service lives and provide series production, such as the Navy’s Virginia-class subma- the greatest return on investment.

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