Posted on December 8, 2021
In a ceremony held this past Friday, December 3, Sturgeon Bay, Wis., shipbuilder Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding delivered the 340 foot long, 5,500-cubic-meter LNG bunkering barge, Clean Canaveral, to Polaris New Energy. The vessel is the largest ATB bunkering barge thus far built in the U.S. and will soon be followed by a second of similar size, on order at the shipyard for a Polaris New Energy affiliate.
“We are really proud to deliver this important vessel on time,” said Craig Perciavalle, Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding’s new vice president and general manager. “Thanks to the entire team here and all of the suppliers and partners who worked through the many challenges over the last couple of years.”
Attending the delivery ceremony were representatives and family members from Polaris New Energy.
The Ceremony
Mac Hummel, CEO of Polaris, offered comments at the delivery the ceremony, as did Thomas Sullivan, senior vice president of operations for Polaris New Energy. After thanking the team at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, Hummel said, “And I recognize it’s not only all of you standing here today. It’s your families, it’s your loved ones, it’s your friends, it’s the local businesses that support the shipyard. It’s local officials that also lend their support.”
“When Northstar decided to enter the LNG bunkering business,” said Sullivan, “we reached out to several shipyards for bids. But based on our past experience with Fincantieri Bay, the incredible talent of the team that’s standing before me now, the welders, the pipe fitters, the electricians, the paint crew, and everyone behind the scenes, my hope was we could come to terms with Fincantieri Bay. And thankfully we did that, because the work that you’ve done is incredible.”
In keeping with maritime tradition, Sullivan’s daughter-in-law Candyce Sullivan ceremoniously smashed a bottle of champagne on a portion of the barge to present the Clean Canaveral.
