Aboitiz Construction completes expansion of Austal Philippines shipbuilding facility
Aboitiz Construction Inc., the construction arm of Aboitiz and the Company has completed the expansion of shipbuilding facilities at Austal Philippines, which contracted the Cebu-based company to design and build six assembly bays including the recently inaugurated John Rothwell Assembly Bay, all based in Austal’s shipyard in Balamban, Cebu.
Aboitiz Construction’s work covered Bays 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10. The expanded facility is intended to meet the growing demand for commercial and defense vessels including the manufacture of large, high-speed aluminum passenger and vehicle passenger ferries. The John Rothwell Assembly Bay alone is an impressive structure measuring 120 meters long, 43 meters wide, and 41 meters tall. It is designed to accommodate large vessel projects for hull assembly, final outfitting, and painting capacity.
At the opening ceremony in Balamban, West Cebu, Aboitiz Construction President and COO Alberto A. Ignacio, Jr. shared that this project is an affirmation of the company’s solid track record as a contractor of quality shipbuilding structures.
“Through this project, Aboitiz Construction has once again proven our capability to provide quality design and build services that meet the standards of our international shipbuilder clients. We do not only build, but our capability today includes designing and developing heavy industrial installations. With this, we also fulfill our brand promise of advancing business and communities where we helped our client to increase their production and at the same time, created the effect of generating hundreds of local jobs while stimulating the local economy,” Mr. Ignacio said.
Austal President Wayne Murray also expressed pride in the collaboration of Austal Philippines and Filipino contractors.
“Our Balamban shipyard is a showpiece and is probably the most modern of its kind here in Asia and Aboitiz Construction helped us build this. Here, we bring together Austal’s most advanced maritime technologies and the capabilities of our Filipino colleagues. We are happy about the work that we have done here together and we are looking forward to continuing this good working relationship in our future projects,” Mr. Murray said.
Austal Philippines and Aboitiz Construction have also agreed to partner in the potential production of new Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV’s) proposed for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). Both companies signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) during the opening ceremony. Austal is currently bidding for the contract to design, construct and sustain a larger variant of the OPVs as part of the modernization program of the AFP. The MOA provides that should Austal succeeds in the bid, and subject to the resolution of commercial terms, Aboitiz Construction will be tapped for the cutting and fabrication of steel hulls.
