Italian Firm Building $150M Shipyard In Mexico

Italian shipbuilding giant Fincantieri recently announced the construction of a ship repair and maintenance yard at Mexico's Port of Progreso. 

The new shipyard will be part of an ongoing expansion and modernization project at the port, located in Mexico's Yucatán state, near the capital city of Mérida.

"The project envisages two masonry dry docks, the largest in the Americas, able to harbor ships up to 400 meters (over 1,320 feet) in length, particularly cruise ships, large cargos and oil and gas vessels," Fincantieri said in a release. "The yard will also have a lifting platform for units up to 150 meters in length, about 1,000 meters [of] docks, cranes, workshops, special equipment, offices and warehouses."

According to a tweet by Yucatán Gov. Mauricio Vila Dosal, Fincantieri will invest $150 million in the new shipyard.

Fincantieri anticipates that construction will begin in early 2021, with the Mexican government managing the dredging and construction of infrastructure. The shipyard will be developed in phases, which the company plans to complete by 2027.

Once completed, the facility could support up to 700 full-time employees and supply a downstream network involving up to 2,500 workers during peak times, the company said.

The geographic position of the Port of Progreso on the Gulf of Mexico was one of the determining factors in making the investment, said Giorgio Rizzo di Grado e di Premuda, administrative director of Fincantieri.

"The new Progreso shipyard will be strategically placed to serve the merchant operators of this area, benefiting from the nearby Yucatán navigation channel, a natural outlet to the Atlantic Ocean," Premuda said in a statement. "The Gulf is also a region with a strong concentration of oil- and gas-related operations, with offshore exploration, production and storage of oil and natural gas."

Fincantieri FNCNF, founded in 1959, is based in Trieste, Italy. The company, one of the largest shipbuilders in the world, constructs both commercial and military vessels. 

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