Page 40: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2002)

Workboat Annual bid. "We feel that with the price (Derecktor) gave, they're going to have a hard time meeting that price and deliver- ing the speed they said they would deliver," he said.

Despite the loss, Lerchbacker said

Austal is intent on winning contracts for larger ships. A major expansion at its

Mobile shipyard will quadruple its cur- rent covered workspace by May 2003, he said.

The expansion will also allow the company to fulfill any military con- tracts, which Austal USA is aggressive- ly pursuing, Lerchbacker said.

Earlier this year, the parent company

Austal Ltd. leased a 331-ft. (101-m) catamaran, the WestPac Express, to the

Navy's Military Sealift Command for use by the U.S. Marine Corps' Third

Marine Expeditionary Force in the

Pacific region in and around Japan. The ship, capable of carrying 970 passengers and 32,000 sq. ft. of cargo, needs only a

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One of Austal's primary competitors for military work is the Australian ship- yard INCAT, based in Tasmania, which has allied itself with Bollinger Ship- yards in Louisiana to fight for military contracts.

While INCAT/Bollinger is considered a formidable team, INCAT has suffered financial problems with its Australia operations and has been recently held in receivership. The company is expected to recover, but some analysts believe the receivership has hurt INCAT's reputa- tion. "INCAT will probably survive if it can sell just one vessel, but it has lost indus- try credibility," said Peter Strachan, an

Australia-based analyst with the stock- broker D.J. Carmichael & Co.

Strachan follows the parent company

Austal Ltd., which is a publicly traded company on the Australian Stock

Exchange under the symbol ASB. Last year, Austal Ltd. had revenues of $194 million and employed 1,700 workers.

Strachan said he expects Austal to continue to do well both internationally and in the U.S.

Austal USA, meanwhile, continues to raise its profile in its new market. Ler- chbacker, for instance, is scheduled to appear at the International Workboat

Show in New Orleans in December, where he will share the stage with rival

Donald "Boysie" Bollinger of Bollinger

Shipyards. The two men are billed to discuss partnerships between U.S. and international companies.

The energetic Lerchbacker said he's eager to take the stage with Bollinger. "I'm going to love it," he said, adding that some of his old Navy buddies have promised to show up for the event.

Lerchbacker said he expects Austal /MARINE/IIR SYSTEMS®

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