Development And Revitalization
Eastern Shipbuilding has been planning and overseeing an expansion of its facilities in Port St. Joe, Fla., originally announced in July 2021 (WJ, July 16, 2021). The Triumph Gulf Coast Board (which administers grants from funds contributed as part of the Deepwater Horizon settlement) unanimously approved a $23.5 million grant June 22 that is earmarked for an estimated $64 million floating dry dock project at the site, expected to create an estimated 400 full-time, competitive high-paying jobs (up from 215 originally projected). That will combine with other public grants as well as Esatern’s own financing. The Gulf County Commission will retain ownership with Eastern as the leased operator. It’s part of a partnership between Eastern and Gulf County that goes back to 2012.
It’s one of several new drydocks announced in recent years, most built to serve U.S. military needs. The General Dynamics Electric Boat facility in Groton, Conn., received a 618-foot floating drydock named Atlas, built by Bollinger Shipyards in Louisiana. It was purpose-built to assemble and launch the U.S. Navy’s new Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines.
In Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (Bremerton, Wash.), the U.S. Navy is executing a multi-billion-dollar drydock program to replace and modernize its aging facilities, including structural upgrades to handle Nimitz- and Ford-class aircraft carriers.
Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., recently broke ground on a $442 million modernization project for Dry Dock 3 to support Virginia-class submarine maintenance.
Colonna’s Shipyard (Norfolk, Va.) recently began fabrication of a new Dry Dock 4, representing an $80 million investment in expanding its deepwater capabilities. Patti Marine Enterprises launched an 800-ton floating drydock in Pensacola, Fla., to expand its commercial and government vessel capabilities.
Of special note among these projects is Master Boat Builders’ 2,000-ton capacity drydock in Coden, Ala., designed and built by Conrad Shipyard to expand its vessel construction and repair capabilities (WJ, Nov. 25, 2025). This drydock will serve both military and commercial clients.
Officials in Gulf County, where Port St. Joe is located, see the project as enabling young people to build solid careers without leaving the area. Investment in physical infrastructure is not enough. England Reeves, director of operations at Eastern’s Port St. Joe facility, recently said, “Workforce is the biggest constraint.” That’s why ESG is working with Gulf County to develop a maritime training academy aimed at building a local pipeline of skilled labor. The planned Gulf County and Eastern Shipbuilding Group Maritime Academy will be located adjacent to the Port St. Joe facility. It is still in development, with land secured and initial grant funding in place, but additional funding is needed before construction and full program rollout can begin, the company said.
All these “catch-up” projects address critical needs and remind us that the revitalization of shipyard and shipbuilding capacity is proceeding, often under the radar or notice of national media outlets. The revival addresses both military and commercial needs and requires public support as well as private investment.
