Here’s how one business in Tacoma found itself suddenly playing vital role in Ukraine
While much has been made of newly announced tank shipments from the United States and Germany to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia, another Ukraine project quietly has come to life in Tacoma.
Bremerton-based SAFE Boats is creating and outfitting eight Mark VI patrol boats in a $100 million contract with the U.S. Navy for Ukraine.
The Port of Tacoma this week released video showing port tenant SAFE Boats International receiving the hull of the first patrol boat at its Earley Business Center site.
The work is the result of plans in the works long before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
In June 2020, the Department of Defense announced Ukraine was set to purchase up to $600 million in military patrol boats and related equipment. The SAFE Boats Mark VI is an 85-foot patrol boat previously only used by the U.S. Navy.
The News Tribune reported in March 2021 that the company would reopen its Port of Tacoma manufacturing operation and add new maritime jobs for the patrol boat work.
The Tacoma port site is where SAFE Boat vessels larger than 65-feet in length are produced.
The location originally was designed for WWII naval ship production, according to SAFE Boat’s website.
At its busiest in World War II, the port’s shipyard employed 33,000 workers and built 74 ships, including escort aircraft carriers, tankers and cargo ships, according to a 2012 News Tribune report covering SAFE Boat’s initial entry into the Tacoma market.
The site is owned by the port and named the Earley Business Center in memory of former port commissioner Bob Earley.
“The facility provides an ideal location to produce, launch, test and support large craft,” SAFE Boats noted on its website.
SAFE Boats has manufactured vessels for naval operations and first responders in almost 70 countries, including Ukraine.
In 2021, SAFE Boats CEO Richard Schwarz said the company has been working toward reopening its Tacoma facility for more than three years. The site had been shuttered after its initial contract with the Navy was fulfilled.
“This is an incredible example of a true partnership which will create jobs and generate economic growth for the region while supporting national security and foreign policy objectives,” he said at the time.
Those sentiments now carry added weight.
The ongoing war in Ukraine has seen NATO countries led by the United States ramping up deliveries of military equipment to aid the country. Those shipments include M1A2 Abrams tanks from the United States and Leopard tanks from Germany, announced in recent days.
What’s next
Schwarz told The News Tribune on Thursday that the first boat arrived in Tacoma on Jan. 11, and a second boat is set to arrive in March.
“We will be outfitting both of those boats in our Tacoma facility,” he said via email.
The rest of the boats will be built “entirely within our facility. We will begin fabricating (welding) the third boat in March.”
He said said the company expects the first two boats to be complete “before the end of the year and will be working with the U.S. Navy to determine how and when those boats will be delivered to Ukraine.”
SAFE Boats now has 25 people working at its Tacoma facility, with plans to add about 40 more workers in the coming months, Schwarz wrote.
“Almost all of the production activity for these boats will occur in Tacoma although some of the supporting functions (engineering, logistics, etc.) will be performed by our Bremerton-based team,” he added.
The work doesn’t stop there, he noted.
“In the future we expect to expand production in Tacoma to include other large vessels for both military and commercial use, including vessels supporting offshore wind.”
The News Tribune archives contributed to this report.
