Blakeley BoatWorks Delivers Mv. Claire Ellen To Cooper Marine
Mobile, Ala.-based Blakeley BoatWorks has delivered the mv. Claire Ellen, the shipyard’s 107th hull, to Cooper Marine’s Louisiana operations.
Designed by Farrell and Norton and built by Blakeley BoatWorks, the Claire Ellen measures 70 feet by 28 feet and offers 1,600 hp.
“The new build program at Blakeley BoatWorks has delivered several vessels in this series, and we’re pleased to deliver the sixth 70-foot pushboat to Cooper Marine-Louisiana,” said Swathin Kannalath, managing director of Blakeley BoatWorks. “We always want to exceed the expectations of the customer by providing the highest level of attention to quality and focusing on reliability.”
The towboat is powered by two Caterpillar C32 800 hp. Tier 3 main engines, which are coupled to a pair of Twin Disc MGX5222 gears. Electrical power is supplied by two Caterpillar C4.4 Tier 3 generators.
The towboat has tankage for 22,000 gallons of fuel and 5,200 gallons of fresh water. The Claire Ellen is outfitted with four staterooms for up to seven crew members, three bathrooms and a full galley.
“We’re proud of the work Blakeley BoatWorks has done and are excited for mv. Claire Ellen to service fleets on the Lower Mississippi River,” said Karl Gonzales, vice president of operations for Cooper Marine-Louisiana. “The addition of this vessel proves to our customers that we aim to continually service our industry with the best equipment and crew members in the industry.”
In addition to delivering the mv. Claire Ellen, Blakeley BoatWorks already has begun construction on the seventh 1,600 hp. vessel in the series, hull 113, which also will go to Cooper Marine’s Louisiana operations.
Situated on 26 acres in the heart of the Port of Mobile, Blakeley BoatWorks has room to simultaneously service up to 15 towing vessels and barges. Equipped with a 1,900-ton floating dry dock, 660-ton travel lift and four covered fabrication shops, Blakeley BoatWorks is a full-service shipyard that specializes in small vessel repair, barge repair and new vessel construction.
Cooper Marine operates 42 towing vessels, 450 hopper barges, and one of the country’s largest fleets of dry bulk gantry and floating derrick cranes. The company has stevedore operations at two deep-draft private cargo terminals in the Port of Mobile, at public bulk terminals in the ports of Corpus Christi and Mobile and at a number of private inland marine terminals throughout the states of Alabama and Mississippi. Cooper Marine’s barge affreightment and towing footprint includes the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, the Mississippi River, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, and the Black Warrior, Tennessee, Tombigbee, Mobile, Ohio, Illinois, Arkansas and Cumberland rivers.
Both the shipyard and Cooper Marine are wholly owned subsidiaries of The Cooper Group. Established in 1905, The Cooper Group has operations on all three U.S. coasts and international operations in Mexico. The company maintains ownership in numerous satellite companies that offer warehousing, terminal operations, tugboats, push boats, barging, barge fleeting, floating terminals, logistics, forestry operations, vessel repair and restaurants.
