Louisiana operator LeBeouf Brothers Towing names new pusher tug

Bourg, Louisiana-based LeBeouf Brothers Towing formally named its newest pusher tug in a ceremony in New Orleans on Saturday, June 15.

Capt Mark Delesdernier Jr was designed by Farrell and Norton Naval Architects of Maine and built by Steiner Shipyard at its Bayou La Batre facilities in Alabama. The tug has a length of 120 feet (37 metres), a beam of 34 feet (10 metres), a draught of nine feet (2.7 metres), a depth of 11 feet (3.4 metres), and accommodation for up to eight crewmembers.

Power is provided by two Cummins QSK-50M diesel engines that each produce 1,800 hp ( kW) at 1,800 rpm. The engines drive two Hung Sen four-bladed propellers via Reintjes WAF773 gearboxes.

The onboard systems meanwhile draw electrical power from two Cummins QSB7-DM 125kW generators.

The tug's namesake, 88-year-old Mark Delesdernier Jr, is a long-time Mississippi River pilot who had also served as President of the Crescent River Port Pilots’ Association and Chairman of the Board of the Port of New Orleans.