Page 30: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (April 2023)

COVER STORY CURTIN MARITIME ore than 25 years ago Martin Curtin took a possible for me to be home ported in California,” said Curtin. leap of faith, betting on himself to make his “I don’t think that our state legislation is aware of the impacts dream reality. “In 1997 I identi? ed a boat – that it’s going to have long term, and we’re taking it on the a single screw Cooper Bessemer LS6 direct chin as far as the regulations go. What we’re hoping is that, reversible Army LT,” said Curtin. “[A com- eventually, when the fanfare of the news cycle goes down, that

M pany in] Seattle had done some twin-screw conversions on regulators will start to be realistic.” that class in the past; I had worked on one and liked it.”

So Curtin embarked on the arduous journey of doing a Curtin Maritime Today twin screw conversion, installing a pair of 12-cylinder Starting with that single twin-screw tugboat, in the early

EMDs and adding Cort nozzles. “That vessel was named years Curtin Maritime was on a subtle growth trajectory,

Seana C, our original tug,” said Curtin. “I didn’t really un- building its second boat in 2007, the Sarah C. With its ? rst derstand how complicated the West Coast towing market tug it was capable of the big jobs – 80,000-barrel oil barges is, but I knew that I wanted to be a tug boat captain and I and 12,000-ton rock barges – playing in the consistency of wanted my own tug.” the contract towing world. With the Sarah C the company ‘Complicated’ is an understatement, as California possesses switched gears, moving into the spot market. “We switched some of the most onerous environmental regulations for the into the spot market when we built the Sarah C because we maritime industry on the planet. Curtin does not shy from ? gured we could make more money, and we went from a making investment in technology and tonnage to improve its 3,000-hp, 107-ft. boat to a 1,500-hp, 65 ft. boat,” said Curtin. carbon footprint, but he laments regulators that force unob- “[While it may have seemed] counterintuitive, we fell into a tainable technology goals via legislation. niche, and through that niche we started doing a lot of work “It’s extremely dif? cult to do business in California, and if I supporting marine construction and dredging. That’s when we were starting Curtin Maritime today, it would probably be im- started to realize that our skillset was well-suited speci? cally 997 okIn IIn 1 1997 M Martiin C Cur i tin too ok a leap of faith, betting on n himself and starting Curtin

M M M M M M M M M Ma M ritime. More than 25 yea ars s s s s a la ll l ter the company has grow wn n n mightily and diversi? ed.

All images courtesy Curtin Maritime 30 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • April 2023

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