Page 58: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 2016)

SHIPBUILDING

A Shipyard Grows in Trinidad & Tobago

Spurred by Panama Canal Expansion and U.S.

LNG Export, $500 Million Shipyard Projects Starts

The Trinidad and Tobago Shipbuild- tration (EIA). In December 2015, the managed source for quali? ed employees,

As Trinidad and Toba- ing and Repair Cluster has long held the SRDC with the assistance of its Stake- many of whom have gained decades of view that government ? nancial invest- holders facilitated an inward visit by a experience from their petroleum indus- go seeks to diversify its ment is central to a country’s successful Maritime Graduate from the UMC. This try, bearing in mind, the close geographi- economy, it is banking economic diversi? cation, as was clearly was the ? rst visitor from The Bolivarian cal position to Trinidad and their large stated in its ‘Vision’ Booklet, ? rst pub- Republic of Venezuela and has also fol- population of 33 million inhabitants.

on a massive shipyard lished by Cluster Stakeholders, when lowed similarly inward sponsored visits The announcement of the shipyard and the now Prime Minister was heading the by maritime related personnel from the the economic diversi? cation of Trinidad construction project

Ministry of Trade & Industry in 2008. United Kingdom in 2009 and the Peo- is considered timely given the recent lift-

The Trinidad and Tobago Shipbuilding ple’s Republic of China in 2012. ing of the 40-year crude oil ban by the as the centerpiece of a and Repair Cluster Stakeholders were With the construction and commence- U.S. Congress, together with the com- maritime industry and pleased to hear the Minister of Finance ment of Shipyard operations at the new missioning of the Cheniere Energy Sa- that the motion tabled will assist the cur- La Brea Shipyard site, expected to be bine Pass Lique? ed Natural Gas (LNG) economic revival. A rent government administration to honor completed in 2018 by China Harbor En- Terminal, strategically located on the contractual agreements already entered, gineering Company Limited (CHEC) Gulf Coast of the U.S.

Trinidad and Tobago as one of these agreements was the De- and project ? nancing arranged by the A recent study undertaken by the Unit- sign, Build and Finance of a $500 mil- Trinidad and Tobago government and ed States Government Accountability

Parliamentary debate lion shipyard development project at La the Export-Import Bank of China, this Of? ce (GAO) and the prediction made earlier this year cen-

Brea, South Western Trinidad which had also represents a tremendous opportunity by the Department of Energy (DOE) been proposed by the Shipbuilding and for Trinidad and Tobago to earn large points to the fact that in the next few tered on the Motion,

Repair Development Company of Trini- amounts of foreign exchange. In fact, the years, the U.S. is expected to change dad and Tobago Limited (SRDC), the SRDC has envisaged that this Shipyard from a net importer of natural gas to a ‘Increase of Loan Ceil- commercial entity of the Cluster, since may have to operate 24 hours-a-day, sev- net exporter, with the completion of ? ve

September 2010. en days a week, similar to the Republic large-scale United States liquefaction fa- ing under The Develop-

This large-scale industrial project, of Singapore, undertaking both sched- cilities – necessary for the conversion of ment Loans Act.’ One which has already been endorsed by both uled and emergency repairs of ocean- natural gas to LNG. This change will re- community residents and environmen- going ships, much in the same manner in quire at least 100 new LNG carrier ships, diversi? cation strategy tal activists alike, will permit the coun- which it has become a global maritime once the ? ve LNG liquefaction facilities try additional opportunities to dry dock leader from its smaller island mass. The are fully operational by their projected involves the country’s large Panamax oceangoing ships, in a Republic of Singapore is calculated to be start-up date of 2020.

graving dock. This included the creation one-? fth the size of Trinidad and Tobago The La Brea Shipyard project can di- thrust into the develop- of a number of alongside repair berths and where a ship movement (arrivals and rectly bene? t from an increase in ship to handle up to Aframax sized tanker departures) occurs at a rate of one ship repairs required by these additional LNG ment and expansion of ships (80,000-120,000 DWT) a tanker every three minutes, approximately. carriers, moving their cargoes from the the maritime sectors, class which frequents the southernmost This industrial-scale shipyard opera- Gulf Coast, including Sabine Pass and regions, including the Caribbean Sea and tion at La Brea (not to be confused with Corpus Christi, Texas through the ex- particularly Shipbuild- are mainly utilized in the ocean transpor- the smaller-sized marinas in Chaguara- panded Panama Canal en-route to Asian tation of crude oil between re? neries, lo- mas, North-West Trinidad) will also de- markets, such as Japan, Taiwan and the ing and Repair.

cated in both The Bolivarian Republic of mand a huge labor force, both unskilled People’s Republic of China. It is antici-

Venezuela and the U.S. labor and skilled technicians, from vari- pated that the commissioning of the third

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ous nationalities. lock in Panama in May 2016, will make

By Wilfred de Gannes, cannot be ignored, as it not only has one Shipbuilding and repair is a globally LNG ship voyages to Asia, some 8,600 of the larger, more established maritime competitive business undertaking, which km shorter and will be able to accom- edited by MR/EN

Universities in the region, La Universi- requires astute management and a dedi- modate 92% of the world’s LNG ? eet or dad Nacional Experimental Marítima del cated labor force. With this in mind, the some 538 LNG carriers.

Caribe (UMC), it also has a large ? eet La Brea Shipyard intends to operate us- Like the well-established Grand Ba- of Aframax tankers for crude oil exports. ing similar labor practices found in many hama Shipyard counterpart, specialized

In 2014 The Bolivarian Republic of Ven- established Shipyards in North America, shipyard investments will also have to be ezuela was also the fourth largest sup- Europe and in the Middle East, where job made in the establishment of clean room plier of imported crude oil to the United opportunities are ? rst advertised locally. workshops and suitably trained staff,

States, behind Canada, Saudi Arabia Un? lled positions will then be advertised to adequately overhaul the many spe- and Mexico, according to the United internationally. The Bolivarian Republic cialized cargo pumps and cargo valves

States Energy Information Adminis- of Venezuela can possibly be one closely found on these LNG carriers. The La 58 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • AUGUST 2016

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