Halter Marine, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded a $149,053,160 fixed-price-incentive (firm target) modification to definitize contract number N00024-19-C-2208 for the detail design and construction of one oceanographic survey ship (T-AGS 67). Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Mississippi and he Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. Fiscal 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $149,053,160 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
T-AGS-67 is a Pathfinder-class oceanographic survey ship. At approximately 350 feet (110 m), The T-AGS 67 is planned to be a modified repeat design of the current USNS Maury (T-AGS-66) ship. The Pathfinder-class survey ships are owned by the United States Navy and operated by Military Sealift Command for the Naval Oceanographic Office (“NAVOCEANO”). They have mostly civilian crews, including scientists from NAVOCEANO. The Pathfinder-class survey ships have three multipurpose cranes and five winches plus a variety of oceanographic equipment.
The requirements of T-AGS 67 will require detailed knowledge and familiarity with the performance characteristics of T-AGS 66 and the T-AGS 60 Class program. hese ships are capable of carrying 34-foot (10 m) hydrographic survey launches (HSLs) for data collection in coastal regions with depths between 10 and 600 meters and in deep water to 4,000 meters (13,000 ft). A small diesel engine is used for propulsion at towing speeds of up to 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph).This modification is to accommodate a 300-square-foot (28 m2) moon pool for unmanned vehicle deployment and retrieval.
VT Halter Marine, Inc. is a shipbuilding company and an American subsidiary of ST Engineering. It is located in Pascagoula, Mississippi. It specializes in ship design and construction and serves both public and private clients, including the United States Department of Defense. Harold Halter and Jimmy Dubuisson started the original company known as Halter Marine in 1956 in New Orleans; their first built vessel was a 26-foot pleasure boat. The company was sold again to ST Engineering (Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd) in 2003, where it began operating under the name VT Halter Marine Inc.
