US EditionFlorida Shipbuilder Wins Bid to Build WA's New Hybrid-Electric Ferries
- On July 1, Governor Bob Ferguson announced that Florida-based Eastern Shipbuilding Group would be building three new 160-vehicle hybrid-electric ferries for Washington State Ferries in Seattle under a $714.5 million agreement.
- Ferguson selected Eastern's bid because it was 6% below Washington State Ferries' engineer estimate and significantly lower than the sole competing Washington-based bid from Nichols Brothers Boat Builders.
- Three new ferries, with projected costs of about $405 million for the initial vessel, $360 million for the follow-up, and $325 million for the last, will operate on important Puget Sound routes such as Seattle-Bremerton and Mukilteo-Clinton.
- Ferguson expressed confidence that Eastern was the most suitable choice to construct the vital new vessels efficiently and affordably for taxpayers, while Higgins criticized the decision, citing concerns over Florida’s less stringent labor and environmental standards.
- The initiative plans to reinstate ferry operations to the levels seen before the pandemic well in advance of the original timeline and to launch hybrid-electric vessels that could cut emissions by up to 90% once the necessary terminal charging facilities are operational.
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WA to buy new hybrid electric ferries from Florida shipyard • Washington State Standard
Washington State Ferries said it would deploy its new electric ferries first on the Mukilteo-Clinton run. Additional orders are expected to follow to replace more than a dozen other aging vessels in the fleet. (Photo by Tom Banse)For the first time in more than 50 years, Washington State Ferries will contract with an out-of-state shipyard to build new vessels. Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson made the final call to accept the low bid from Florida-b…
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