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Those participating in the Ultramar launching ceremony at the NASSCO Yard in San Diego included, left to right: the Right Honorable Lord Remnant, director of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited; Mrs. Alfonso C. Sepe, matron of honor; Oliver T. Henry, Southern California Area Representative, Western Region, Maritime Administra- tion; John V. Banks, president and chief executive officer, National Steel and Shipbuild- ing Company; Mrs. Leo V. Berger, sponsor; Capt. Leo V. Berger, president, Aries Marine Shipping Company; the Honorable Helen Delich Bentley, chairman, U.S. Maritime Com- mission, principal speaker; Peter Constas, vice president, Aries Marine Shipping Company; Campbell L. Nelson, chairman and managing director, Ultramar Company Limited; Jesse Calhoun, president, Marine Engineers Beneficial Association; Lloyd E. Benson, executive vice president, American Ultramar Limited; Robert Young, president, American Bureau of Shipping, and Arnold Lorbeer, president, American Ultramar Limited. First Of Two NASSCO-Designed OBOs The S/S Ultramar The S/S Ultramar, the largest ship ever to 'be built on the West Coast, was launched at National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO), San Diego, Calif., on February 17, 1973. Ceremonies began at 9:30 a.m. with a band concert by the U.S. Marine Corps Depot Band. Mrs. Leo V. Berger, wife of the president of Aries Marine Shipping Company, served as sponsor. Her daughter. Mrs. Phyllis Spen- cer Sepe, wife of the Honoraible Judge Alfonso C. Sepe, assisted as matron of honor. The Honorable Helen Delich Bentley, Chair- man, Federal Maritime Commission, was the principal speaker. Mrs. Bentley is the first woman to serve in a key Government position in the maritime field and also the first woman to be appointed by a president to serve as chairman of a regulatory agency. Others participating in the ceremonies in- cluded the Rev. Dr. Robert H. Mayo, pastor, First Presbyterian Church, San Diego; John V. Banks, president and chief executive officer, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company; Arnold Lorbeer, president, American Ultramar Limited; Capt. Leo V. Berger, president, Aries Marine Shipping Company, and John M. Murphy, vice president, sales, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company. Immediately following the launch of the Ultramar, the keel was laid for a sister ship, the S/S Ultrasea, by Dale H. Austin, vice president, American Ultramar Limited. The Ultramar is the first of two NASSCO- designed San Clemente Class oil/bulk/ore car- riers (OBOs) to be built for Aries Marine 6 Shipping Company of Lake Success, N.Y. The contract for the construction of the two OBOs was awarded to NASSCO on June 30, 1971, by Aries Marine Shipping Company and the Maritime Administration, Department of Com- merce. This was the first contract awarded under the 1970 Merchant Marine Act that provided Government assistance for bulk car- riers and encouraged shipyards to design and market high-performance ships. Economic studies sponsored by the Mari- time Administration pointed to the OBO-type vessel as being best suited to recapture the U.S. bulk trade now largely carried in foreign- flag ships. The versatility of the OBO in being able to transport different products, liq- uid or dry bulk, between ports, permits high utilization and low-cost transportation. The new OBO will be of the maximum size that can transit the Panama Canal. The Ultra- mar has an overall length of 892 feet 6 inches, a beam of 105 feet 9 inches, a draft of 62 feet 6 inches, and a deadweight tonnage of 80,500. The propulsion will be single-screw steam turbine, for a sustained full-load speed of 16.5 knots. When completed, the S/S Ultramar and her sister ship will be operated by Aries Marine for Ultramar Company Limited under a 20- year time charter. The projected use of the OBO is to carry crude oil from Libya to the Ultramar groups' refinery in Quebec. Among the backhaul potentials being explored for the flexible OBO is the haulage of iron ore and refined products from Canada to the United States, and the transport of coal to European Mediterranean ports, as well as wheat to Russia. Approximately 8,000 spectators were pres- ent to view the colorful ceremonies. On January 26, 1973, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company signed a $7.5-million contract with the U.S. Navy for the design support of a new Sea Control Ship. Subject to appropriations, a year or more from now, NASSCO will be given the oppor- tunity to negotiate with the Navy on con- struction of the lead ship. The Sea Control Ship will have an overall length of about 610 feet, a beam of about 80 feet, with displacement of about 14,000 tons. National Steel and Shipbuilding Company is managed by Kaiser Industries Corporation and owned equally by Kaiser Industries Cor- poration and Morrison-Knudsen Company, Inc. Immediately following the launch of the S/S Ultramar, the keel was laid for a sister ship, the S/S Ultrasea. Shown left to right, Chester C. Goss, president, C.l.T. Corpora- tion; John V. Banks, president and chief executive officer. National Steel and Shipbuilding Company; Dale H. Aus- tin, vice president, American Ultramar Limited, laying the keel, and John Packett, NASSCO welding foreman. Maritime Reporter/Engineering News
