b'MEMBER NEWSTwo PVA Member Shipyards Bidon New Washington State Ferries VesselsN ichols Brothers Boat Build-ersofFreeland,Wash., andEasternShipbuilding Group,Inc.ofPanamaCity,Fla., havesubmittedbidstoWashington State Ferries (WSF) for their planned hybrid-electric 160-auto ferries. TheferriesarepartofWSFs$3.98 billionFerrySystemElectrification program which has a goal of an emis-sion-free ferry fleet by 2050. To get there,WSFwillultimatelyconvert six existing vessels to hybrid-electric power,build16newhybrid-electricOnce the contract is signed, the ship- power, cutting emissions by about 90 vessels,andaddshorechargingtoyardwillhelpcompletethedesignpercent compared to the ferries they 16 terminals. which is expected to take about a year.will replace. The vessels will use diesel EasternShipbuildingestimatedtheConstruction will follow, and WSF isonly when needed. The electrification firstvesselwouldcost$251,287,105offering incentives for early delivery.of the first five terminalsBainbridge andproposedatotalcostofWhenterminalsareelectrified,theIsland, Bremerton, Clinton, Kingston $714,471,409forthefirstthreeves- new vessels will run mostly on electricand Seattleis in progress. sel combined. Nichols Brothers Boat Builderssubmittedanestimateof $338,619,337 for the first vessel, and acombinedtotalofover$1billion forthefirstthreeferries.Theengi-neersestimatefortheprojectwas closertoEasternsbid,projecting $256,800,000 for vessel number one, and $772,800,000 for the first three ferries combined. WSF is reviewing the bids to ensure compliancewithrequirementsand will evaluate the bid documents and PHOTO: ELLIOTT BAY DESIGN GROUPsupporting information before award-ingacontract.Astatementbythe operator noted that price is only one factor, and no assumptions should be made about awarding the contract.41 MAY 2025'