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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, January 25, 2003

Local firm gets contract maintaining Navy fleet

By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer

For the first time in more than 15 years, a Honolulu company has secured a Navy contract to maintain Pearl Harbor's mothballed fleet, often called the "graveyard."

Pacific Shipyards International, one of five bidders, was awarded a $3.6 million contract with four one-year options that, if exercised, would increase the total value to $27.4 million.

"It means employment will increase — Pacific Shipyards International employment will increase by at least 75 men for year one," said chief executive officer Bill Clifford.

Clifford said the inactive fleet at Pearl Harbor includes several old Spruance-class destroyers, oilers, several tank landing ships, barges, dry docks, cranes, salvage ships and tugboats. The ships can be reactivated, sold to other countries, eventually scrapped, or used as targets for naval exercises.

Clifford said Global Marine of California had done the maintenance job for at least 15 years. When the contract first came out, the Pearl Harbor and Bremerton, Wash., inactive fleet jobs were bundled together. Pacific Shipyards objected, and with the help of U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawai'i, the projects were separated, Clifford said.

"We're not in a position to bid on both — we're a small Hawai'i company," he noted. "(The job separation) was all due to Congressman Abercrombie's support. It gave us the opportunity to win the job."

Other Hawai'i bidders also pursued the job.

Pacific Shipyard has about 75 workers, Clifford said. Honolulu Shipyard Inc., a member company of Pacific Shipyard, has 150 workers.

"The job we have (with the inactive fleet) is to maintain these craft and vessels in whatever class of readiness the Navy has selected for them to be in," Clifford said.

Two early 1970s frigates, the Rathburne and Harold E. Holt, were sunk during Rim of the Pacific 2002 exercises along with the combat supply ship White Plains, commissioned in 1968.

Abercrombie said the contract, in addition to being good news for Hawai'i's economy, "signals the Navy's continuing commitment to Hawai'i as a forward base in the Pacific."

In addition, Y Hata & Co. Ltd. won a $22 million contract for food distribution for Navy ships. The Honolulu company in 1998 received a five-year, $40 million contract to provide food service for the Navy.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.