Shipbuilder Bollinger Shipyards on Monday said it has acquired Gulf Island Fabrication, Inc.’s [GIFI] shipyard division and facilities in a $26.4 million deal that expands its capacity and capabilities to serve its defense and commercial customers.
Terms of the deal include an additional $2.2 million payment based on collection of certain customer payments related to the Gulf Island shipyard’s construction contracts.
The new 437-acre Bollinger facility is 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico on the Houma Navigation Canal in Louisiana, and includes a 15,000-short ton drydock, a 4,000-short ton drydock, a 3,000-short ton drydock and a 1,500-short ton drydock. The shipyard also includes 18,000 square feet of administrative and operations facilities, 160,000 square feet of covered fabrication facilities, 20,000 square feet of warehouse facilities, and 6,750 linear feet of water frontage.
“The addition of the new Houma shipyard further strengthens our position within the U.S. defense industrial base as a leading shipbuilder and vessel repair company,” Ben Bordelon, president and CEO of Bollinger, said in a statement. “For 75 years, we’ve developed a deep expertise in and proven track record of building reliable, high endurance steel vessels for the Coast Guard, Navy and our commercial customers. As the needs of these customers change and grow, we are constantly looking for ways to invest in and expand our capabilities and innovative solutions so that we can continue to provide them with the highest levels of quality, support and service in our industry.”
Bollinger currently builds the Coast Guard’s Fast Response Cutters, and is under contract to the Electric Boat division of General Dynamics [GD] to construct an ocean transport barge and floating drydock. Louisiana-based Bollinger also has commercial customers servicing energy production to dredging.
Bollinger is also doing studies for a number of other programs, including the Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Cutter, the Navy’s Common Hull Auxiliary Multi-Mission Platform, the Auxiliary General Ocean Surveillance program, the Large Unmanned Surface Vessel and the Light Amphibious Warship.
The Houma shipyard has contracts to construct three research vessels for Oregon State Univ. and five towing, salvage and rescue ships for the Navy.
Gulf Island’s financial advisor on the deal was Johnson Rice & Company.