The Maritime Administration has approved in principle an application by Parker Towing Co., Inc., Tuscaloosa, Ala., for a Title XI guarantee to aid in financing the construction of two towboats, the M/V Charles Haun and another, designated Towboat No. 2.
Each vessel will have a length overall of 85 feet, a molded beam of 34 feet, and will be rated at 2,000 hp. Hudson Shipbuilders, Inc., Pascagoula, Miss., and Mississippi Marine Towboat Corp., Greenville, Miss., are the builders of the vessels. The M/V Charles Haun was delivered in September; Towboat No. 2 is scheduled for delivery this month. Both vessels are expected to be employed on the Black Warrior-Tombigbee River system and Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The Title XI guarantee covers $2,272,000 or about 75 percent of the estimated actual cost of $3,034,589.