Disappeared News

by Larry Geller

Maritime industry expert Tim Colton ran this short blurb on the Hawaii Superferry bankruptcy:

HAWAII SUPERFERRY FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY
End of the HSF story.  Read the report in the Honolulu Advertiser here.  Read the filing here.  Now that HSF is broke, MARAD [the federal Maritime Administration] can take title to the two ships, pay off the bondholders and maybe charter them directly to the Navy.  Somewhere in this pile of @&*% there's a pony.   May 31, 2009.

That lead to this story in the Press Register (Alabama), Austal, Maritime Administration weigh next step after Hawaii Superferry files Chapter 11, 6/2/2009), referring to the two HSF ships:

Their future may indeed be with the military, industry watchers have said.

Austal late last year was awarded a potential $1.6 billion contract for so-called Joint High Speed Vessels, which are similar in design to the Hawaii Superferry. The first one is not scheduled for delivery until 2011.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in April that he intended to charter two fast ferries to transport troops and equipment, while up to 10 of the Joint High Speed Vessels are being built at Austal USA.

Upon news of the bankruptcy, industry analyst Tim Colton said on his blog that "now that HSF is broke, MARAD can take title to the two ships, pay off the bondholders and maybe charter them directly to the Navy."

Susan Clark, a MARAD spokeswoman in Washington, D.C., said the administration can indeed foreclose on the vessels once it assumes the debt or pays off the obligations.

However, she said, "it is too preliminary in the process to determine what other options may be available."

Austal officials, as well, said it's too early to say how they will proceed or what future role Austal might play.

Permalink posted by Larry @ 6/02/2009 09:55:00 PM