Exxon christens second new Alaska tanker

The second of ExxonMobil’s two new Alaska oil tankers was formally christened and named the Eagle Bay in a Jan. 12 ceremony at a Pennsylvania shipyard.

The 820-foot ship is expected to begin hauling Alaska North Slope crude oil later this year, ExxonMobil said in a press release. It can carry 800,000 barrels of oil.

The Eagle Bay is the second of two double-hull tankers Aker Philadelphia Shipyard is building for ExxonMobil’s marine affiliate, Houston-based SeaRiver Maritime Inc.

The first tanker, the Liberty Bay, was delivered to SeaRiver in June 2014.

Pennsylvania’s governor and other dignitaries attended the Eagle Bay christening, which featured the traditional breaking of a champagne bottle against the ship.

SeaRiver ordered the two tankers under a $400 million contract with Aker.

“Eagle Bay is equipped with double-hull protection, the latest navigation and communications equipment, and energy efficient engines,” Aker said in its own press release.

The new ships will replace aging double-hull tankers SeaRiver has operated in the Alaska trade.

The tanker fleet hauling oil between Alaska’s Valdez terminal and West Coast refineries has fully converted from single-hull to double-hull ships. This conversion came after reforms stemming from the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989.

ExxonMobil is the last of the North Slope’s top three oil producers to build new double-hull tankers. BP and ConocoPhillips each built several new tankers some years ago.

- WESLEY LOY