Mobile shipyard purchase expected

Lehman’s New York-based firm, J.F. Lehman & Co., is expected to complete the purchase of the US shipbuilder Atlantic Marine Holding within a few weeks, according to a spokesman for Atlantic Marine. Since its 1992 founding, J.F. Lehman has acquired 13 maritime, defence and aerospace companies through $1.2 billion in transactions, according to the company.

Lehman said in a statement that he expected to keep all of Atlantic Marine’s 600 employees in Mobile and 650 employees in Jacksonville, Florida. “We believe that the company has tremendous growth prospects and are looking forward to partnering with management to implement our shared vision for taking advantage of these opportunities,” Lehman said. Atlantic Marine has begun notifying other Mobile shipyards, and on Wednesday told Alabama state docks officials of its plans.

Lehman’s contacts in the shipbuilding industry and access to money that could be used for expansion will be a boon for Atlantic Marine and Mobile, state docks Director Jimmy Lyons said Wednesday. “This outfit is really going to be looking for opportunities to expand,” Lyons said.

Atlantic Marine is one of the largest employers along the Mobile River and operates two adjacent shipyards on Pinto Island, the Alabama Shipyard for new construction and another for repair work. The company owns about 650 acres in Mobile and has several tenants that lease property, including Austal USA on Blakeley Island.

In October 2005, J.F. Lehman bought a controlling interest in the parent company of Hawaii Superferry Inc. The Honolulu-based ferry company has a $161 million contract with Austal USA to build two ferries designed to shuttle people and cars among the Hawaiian islands. Both ferries are currently under construction in Mobile.

Austal is also an equity partner in the superferry company.

Atlantic Marine is about a $205 million in revenue company and, in Mobile, it operates the region’s largest dry dock, with some of its more high-profile work refurbishing cruise ships.