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Startup shipbuilder New Pacific Industrial, Vancouver, Wash., has landed its first new construction program, a pair of 122'x37' oceangoing tugs for American Marine Corp., Honolulu.
Designed by Glosten, Seattle, the American-class boats are also the first newbuilds in American Marine's history. The towing and marine services operator, which is marking 50 years in business, has previously grown its fleet through acquisition.
"As American Marine celebrates half a century in business, our first newbuild tug represents an important milestone and an investment in the next generation of our operations," said Bob Shahnazarian, president and owner of American Marine Corp. "We wanted a team that could take our operational requirements and carry them all the way through design, construction, and delivery. New Pacific and Glosten give us that continuity throughout the program."
New Pacific will build the vessels at its Columbia River waterfront shipyard, and delivery of the lead boat is scheduled for the third quarter of 2028.
New Pacific's Vancouver site was part of the World War II-era Kaiser Shipyards complex and now houses more than 180,000 sq. ft. of covered space supporting shipbuilding and heavy industrial fabrication. The yard offers high-bay fabrication areas, heavy-lift crane capacity, outdoor laydown, and both rail and barge access.
The company was founded by CEO Joe Corvelli, COO Chris Palmer, and CCO Peter Roney, who together bring more than 90 years of experience across commercial and government shipbuilding, marine operations, and advanced manufacturing.
"New Pacific was founded around a straightforward idea: complex projects need experienced people, capable infrastructure, and an operating model that works for the customer," Corvelli said. "Starting with a newbuild program alongside American Marine and Glosten puts that model into practice from day one."
"We're building on a site with a long industrial history, but the objective isn't to recreate the past. It's to expand the capability the Pacific region needs today," Palmer said. "Our role is to build on the region's strong workforce and supplier ecosystem and put serious industrial work back through this waterfront."
Glosten is supplying the design and engineering package, working from its CT-120 line-haul tug concept and adapting it to American Marine's requirements while preserving the parent design's emphasis on range, towing performance, and constructability.
"AMC was looking for a modern line-haul tug built for long, demanding ocean tows," said Peter Soles, principal, business development at Glosten. "It had to be a true ocean roamer — a capable, practical tug that's comfortable to live and work on, and built to tow hard for decades. The CT-120 gave us a strong starting point, but this is very much an American Marine tug. We worked closely with their team to make sure the design reflects what they've learned over many years of deep-ocean towing."
The 499-gt boats will draw 17' in operating condition and carry 130,000 gals. of usable fuel.
Twin Wabtec marine diesels rated 3,017 hp each — roughly 6,034 hp total — will turn 120"-diameter stainless steel propellers in Nautican nozzles through Reintjes reverse-reduction gears supplied by Karl Senner LLC. Nautican triple-rudder systems will handle steering. Bollard pull is projected at more than 85 metric tons.
On deck, Markey Machine is supplying a diesel-driven, double-drum towing winch spooling 2,600' of 2¼" wire rope on each drum, along with a single-drum headline winch with a clutchable warping head. Smith Berger Marine will provide a flush-mounted pin table and shark jaws.
"This project reflects how we want to work with our customers and industry partners: accessible, transparent, and flexible, with the experience and resources to build the right solution around the requirements of each program," said Roney.
