International Marine Terminal/Cianbro Amethyst Project Tour
Portland, Maine

On behalf of President Bush and Secretary Mineta, it is great to be here in Portland, Maine. I appreciate the opportunity to see the famed Amethyst rigs and to publicly welcome the Cianbro Corporation to the maritime family.

What you have accomplished here in Portland is exactly what the President envisions when he speaks of growing our economy and creating jobs for every American who wants to work. The President's Jobs and Growth tax relief package has helped fuel the surge in the economy we saw in the third quarter – 8.2% growth, the strongest in two decades. The President's policies will continue to provide substantial stimulus over the coming year. But while we can lay a firm foundation in Washington, it is entrepreneurial companies and leaders with vision whom create the jobs. So when Peter Vigue and Peter Ciancette visited me in Washington last summer and invited me to tour the rigs and the facility that Cianbro has established here, I could not pass up the opportunity to see them for myself. This is a unique project – a project that represents in part a rebirth of commercial shipbuilding in the state of Maine. There is a renaissance currently taking place in commercial shipbuilding on the East Coast, and Cianbro can rightfully claim to be one of the leaders and pioneers in revitalizing this industrial capacity that was on the verge of becoming obsolete.

What Cianbro did was to identify a niche market and then take the plans and components for two structures from the Gulf Coast that were nowhere near complete and transform them into these rigs that now adorn Portland’s harbor. What we see here today is remarkable.

And it is a tribute to the men and women – close to 1000 – who have worked on the Amethyst Project. You should be proud. You have accomplished what some thought was impossible.

And let me add that you accomplished this task with a notable safety record. Indeed, Cianbro celebrated an amazing safety milestone last October – two million hours without losing a single day to injury – representing the greatest safety accomplishment of any project in the company’s history. And this was Cianbro’s first shipbuilding construction project, and many of the employees involved had never even worked on an oilrig! Congratulations on a job well done.

The construction of these rigs has meant new jobs and greater diversity of skills for Cianbro’s workforce. The company’s dedication to diversifying its workforce and their skills will make the company, an employee-owned enterprise, more flexible and better poised to meet the demands of the future economy.

With any major project, teamwork is critical to success. Strategic partnerships included the City of Portland and the U.S. Maritime Administration, which was pleased to guarantee the project through a $342 million loan guarantee.

It took a real leap of faith for Cianbro to enter the maritime industry as a shipbuilder and true vision on the part of the city to become a partner in Cianbro’s belief that it could succeed as a shipbuilder. We look forward to this continued synergy to keep Cianbro’s shipbuilding operation busy for years to come and bringing even more jobs to Portland’s waterfront.

Maine is home to a skilled and educated workforce, and it is apparent that the Amethyst Project has served as a catalyst to the City of Portland – enhancing and building upon the state’s already strong maritime tradition. Shipping and Shipbuilding are familiar industries to the state of Maine, but most of the work has been concentrated on the Navy – of which the state and Nation are very proud.

It has been a long time, however, since Maine has seen an integrated maritime commercial effort of this magnitude. And it is only the beginning.

Portland is capitalizing on the rebirth of the City’s working waterfront to position itself to take advantage of the future demands of the marine transportation industry.

A growing economy means greater freight tonnage – the value of freight tonnage is projected to triple over the next twenty years. To prepare, the Bush Administration has placed significant emphasis on facilitating freight and goods movement across the national transportation network and to better take advantage of the Nation’s waterways.

And Portland is at the head of the curve. The City plans to redevelop its international marine terminal as a dedicated cargo facility. The City will also preserve its roll-on, roll-off infrastructure, which will become an integral part of the marine transportation highway and could potentially serve as a platform for short sea shipping services.

A safe, reliable and efficient transportation network is vital to our Nation’s economic strength. Working waterfronts are a significant piece of that network. The President and Secretary Mineta appreciate Portland’s forward-thinking approach. You are investing not only in the waterfront, but also in jobs for the people who live here and a vibrant American economy.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Jeff Monroe of the City of Portland for organizing this event and to recognize the City of Portland and Cianbro for their entrepreneurial spirit and ability to accomplish something truly remarkable. You are well positioned to share future successes together, and you have staked out a leadership position in the rebirth of the nation’s maritime industry.