Philly Shipyard cuts steel for first of three new Matson Aloha class ships

Photo: Philly Shipyard

Philly Shipyard Inc. yesterday held a steel cutting ceremony to mark the start of construction on the first of three 3,600 TEU Aloha class LNG-fueled containerships to be built for Honolulu-headquartered Matson Navigation Company Inc.

Representatives from Philly Shipyard and Matson gathered for short remarks before Regis Burkhardt, Matson site team manager, pushed the button of the shipyard’s state of the art plasma cutter to officially begin production.

“Today we celebrate not only the beginning of production, but also the return of Matson to Philly Shipyard for our third project together,” said Steinar Nerbovik, Philly Shipyard’s president and CEO. “We are thrilled to build these next vessels which are expected to help Matson achieve its 2030 greenhouse gas emissions goal, an initiative well-aligned with our commitment to people and planet.”

The contract for the Aloha class vessels was originally signed in 2022 with an approximate valuation of $1 billon, and with deliveries expected in 2026 and 2027.

Measuring 854 feet (260 meters) long, the three new Aloha class vessels will match the length of the two existing Aloha class ships, currently the largest Jones Act containerships ever constructed.

The 3,600 TEU vessels are capable of carrying a variety of container sizes and operating at speeds in excess of 23 knots.

“Our existing Aloha ships are among the fastest, most efficient vessels in the Matson fleet,” said Matt Cox, Matson’s chairman and chief executive officer. “And like their sisterships, these three new vessels will help Matson achieve its 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal while also providing additional capacity and speed benefitting our Hawaii service as well as the CLX.”

The three new Jones Act-compliant vessels, will be built to match the size and speed of Matson’s two existing Aloha class ships, Daniel K. Inouye, and Kamina Hila, which were also built by Philly Shipyard and entered service in 2018 and 2019, respectively, as the largest containerships ever constructed in the U.S.

Like their sisterships, the new vessels will be equipped with dual fuel engines designed to operate on either conventional marine fuels or liquefied natural gas (LNG). Other “green ship technology” features incude a fuel-efficient hull design, environmentally safe double hull fuel tanks, and freshwater ballast systems. While the earlier ships required some modification to operate with LNG, the new ships will be delivered LNG-ready.

The three new Aloha class ships will replace three vessels currently deployed in Matson’s Hawaii and CLX services.

Matson plans to name the three new containerships Makua, Malama, and Makena. Founded in 1882 as a Hawaii-focused business, Matson has a long tradition of giving Hawaiian names to its vessels serving Hawaii,