Eastern Delivers Tug To Bisso

Eastern Shipbuilding Group recently delivered the second of two 80-foot, 5,100 hp. Z-drive tugs, the mv. A. Thomas Higgins, to Bisso Offshore LLC, a division of E.N. Bisso & Son Inc. of New Orleans.

Designed by Robert Allan Ltd., the boat is a sister to the mv. C.D. White—which was delivered in January and is currently working in New Orleans—and is the sixth Z-drive tug built by Eastern for Bisso.

The 80- by 38- by 13-foot A. Thomas Higgins features twin Caterpillar 3512E Tier 4 diesels, supplied by LA Cat, which power Kongsberg/Rolls Royce US205 P20 Z-drives. Kennedy Engines Company supplied two John Deere  4045AFM85 Tier 3 generator sets, each rated at 99 kW at 1,800 rpm.