Bollinger Shipyards has announced plans to close its New Orleans location and shift the bulk of the work to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
The Louisiana-based company, which is America’s largest privately owned shipbuilder, confirmed the consolidation move earlier this week to The Times-Picayune. All jobs at Algiers Point will be relocated to Bollinger’s other 13 facilities.
“We recently reallocated the work being performed at Algiers to our other facilities along the Gulf Coast,” spokesperson T.J. Tatum said. “Importantly, all jobs were relocated within our other 13 facilities as we continue to expand our workforce.”
The largest of the two dry docks at Algiers, known as “Mrs. Jody,” has been transported to what used to be VT Halter Marine in Pascagoula. The shipyard was purchased by Bollinger for $15 million in November 2022, growing the company’s total workforce to more than 3,000.
While Mrs. Jody weighs in at 4,000 tons and measures around 200 by 76 feet, the smaller of the two docks – “Miss Darby” – is about half the size and has sailed off to Port Fourchon to be reconditioned. It will likely be moved to a different Louisiana location afterward.
The Times-Picayune also reported that the closing of Bollinger’s New Orleans location was not a reflection on the city or a downturn in business, rather it was a strategic decision for the future of the company.
