Federal lawmakers say region's shipyards should be considered for defense work

The three men who represent St. Mary Parish in Washington are urging the Trump administration to give stronger consideration to South Louisiana’s small shipyards when defense contracts are awarded.

“These yards compete daily in fast-moving commercial markets, where success depends on rapid execution, continuous innovation, and disciplined cost control,” said a letter to Secretary Pete Hegspeth from U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins and U.S. Sens. John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy, all Republicans.

Defense projects have already become a lucrative source of work for area shipyards.

Conrad Shipyard has been building YRBM vessels for use by the Navy as floating homes for sailors whose ships are at the dock for repairs. Two new entries in local shipbuilding, Saronic and Magnet Defense, build autonomous surface vessels with defense applications.

And Bollinger, a larger shipyard with a facility in Amelia, has been a longtime supplier of fast response cutters to the Coast Guard.

Shipbuilding employment in St. Mary was just short of 800 at the end of 2024, when the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers were available.

“We write to encourage the Department of War to give deliberate and sustained consideration to small and mid-sized domestic shipyards, including those in South Louisiana, when awarding shipbuilding, repair, modernization, and sustainment contracts, as the Department works to restore America’s shipbuilding capacity and strengthen the nation’s defense industrial base,” the lawmakers wrote.

“Louisiana’s small and mid-sized shipyards already operate in a manner consistent with the Department’s stated aim to prioritize speed, innovation, and a ‘commercial-first’ mindset in defense acquisition. … That operating model enables them to adapt quickly to evolving requirements, integrate new technologies, and deliver complex vessels at pace—capabilities that directly support the Department’s effort to modernize procurement and strengthen the defense industrial base.”