On December 4, 2018, Australian ship-building company Austal Limited confirmed that it bagged a contract of almost half a million TT dollars for designing and constructing a high-speed vehicle and passenger catamaran for Trinidad and Tobago. Contracted by the National Development Company (NIDCO), Austal will build the 94-metre high-speed vessel worth TT$ 486 million (approx.) and expectedly deliver by mid-2020.
The ship, named the AutoExpress, will provide high-speed passenger and vehicle operations on the key sea bridge between the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The designing of the ship has already begun in Australia and is already well-advanced with initial construction being undertaken.
The design of the ship underscores its capability to carry 250 cars and 926 passengers at speeds of 37.5 knots. It will reportedly feature Austal’s newly developed and industry-leading innovation in smart ship technology MarineLink Smart.
The company said the ship would be built in Austal’s new shipyard in Vung Tau, Vietnam, as a result of which, Austal expects its new shipyard to make some profit in its first year of operations and to quickly expand to over 450 people from just under 100 employees currently.
“The development of the new AutoExpress design was initiated in early 2016 and has proven to be a great success which has now resulted in ship contracts worth approximately AU$300 million. We remain committed to developing the most advanced high speed aluminium ships in the world further exemplified by the sale of 3 new trimarans, previously announced, which are currently in the construction phase.”
On receiving this contract, Austal CEO David Singleton said, “We are delighted that the Government of Trinidad and Tobago have selected Austal as their partner to design and build this next-generation vessel. This new contract will build upon the Austal fleet already in Trinidad which includes four 41metre catamaran Water Taxis and six, 30 metres, monohull fast patrol craft.”
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