Tidewater Transportation and Terminals, the Vancouver-based marine transportation business, highlighted its new towboat, Crown Point, at a christening ceremony Saturday.
The afternoon event started at the main ballroom of the Red Lion Hotel Vancouver at the Quay, with a reception, ceremony and speeches. When the 100 or so attendees moved outside to Terminal 1 for the christening, Nancy Curcio did the honors; she was accompanied by husband Bob Curcio, Tidewater’s new president and CEO.
“I christen thee Crown Point!” Nancy Curcio proclaimed, then hammered down the traditional bottle of sparkling beverage as a blast from the towboat’s horn joined in the celebration.
The 102-foot towboat actually has been on the job for a couple of weeks, Tidewater spokeswoman Jennifer Riddle said. But Crown Point has stayed fairly close to home as workers wrapped up some finishing touches. Now it is ready to go to work on the Columbia River system.
Crown Point is designed and built to run with improved fuel efficiency, reducing air emissions; it also features sound and vibration controls.
It’s one of three towboats that Tidewater is adding to its fleet of 16 vessels and 160 barges as part of its larger effort to move cargo along the Columbia and Snake rivers.
The other boats are Granite Point and Ryan Point. Tidewater selected Portland-based Vigor Industrial to build the three new towboats.
Tidewater traces its history to the early 1930s. In December 2012, the company announced a partnership with a new equity investor, Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, a New York-based investment firm.
In June 2013, the company announced that Bob Curcio, previously a senior vice president for GE Oil & Gas, had been appointed as its new president and CEO. Curcio succeeded Dennis McVicker, who served as Tidewater’s CEO since 2005.
The company moves cargo among a network of ports, terminals and grain elevators along the Columbia and Snake rivers, which spans 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean, at the mouth of the Columbia River, inland to Lewiston, Idaho.
