PITTSFIELD – Cianbro Corp. announced Wednesday that it will be retrofitting the world’s two largest offshore supply vessels at Portland Harbor over the next year and a half, using Bath Iron Works as its primary subcontractor.

“This contract proves that Maine is not too far off the beaten path for the maritime industry,” Cianbro President Peter Vigue said Wednesday.

“When you take creative approaches, Maine can compete,” Vigue said. “This is a significant project for both our company and our state. The collaborative efforts of this project team will help energize and elevate Maine’s visibility as a serious competitor in the global maritime construction market.”

Cianbro was awarded the contract by Hornbeck Offshore Services Inc. of Covington, La., to convert two sulfur tankers, HOS 370s, into multipurpose supply vessels. Vigue said the ships are 420 feet long and will be retrofitted with new tanks for cargo, all new propulsion and drive systems, new electrical wiring and a modified superstructure.

More than 300 skilled people are expected to work on the project, performing structural fabrication and welding, pipefitting and pipe welding, and electrical work. A local naval architect has been hired to assist the project.

Vigue said Cianbro will be using a significant number of its current workers on the project but also will be hiring new people. How many new workers will be hired will be based on what other projects the company has under way at the time.

“This represents the culmination of a three-year effort by our in-house engineering team to design a multipurpose supply vessel with Swiss Army Knife capabilities that, we believe, will revolutionize the offshore support services industry,” Todd Hornbeck, chairman, president and CEO of Hornbeck Offshore Services, said Wednesday.

“The HOS 370s will be unlike any vessels currently working in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, in that they are designed to have multiple U.S. Coast Guard certifications and American Bureau of Shipping class notations,” he said.

Hornbeck said the ships will be designed to support offshore construction, subsea well intervention, pipeline commissioning, and floating hotel services, among others.

Along with jobs for Maine workers, Vigue said the local economy also will receive a boost from members of Hornbeck’s project management team, their engineers and other offshore professionals employed by the project. Local hotels, restaurants, airports, and other merchants will experience the positive impact these project members will have on the state, Vigue added.

“The city is thrilled to once again partner with Cianbro on another important maritime project for our waterfront,” Capt. Jeff Monroe, Portland’s director of ports and transportation, said Wednesday. “This underscores our continuing need to have flexible marine infrastructure to meet the needs of our maritime community.”

The first vessel will dock this month at Ricker’s Wharf, Cianbro’s marine facility on Cassidy Point on Portland’s waterfront, Vigue said. Vigue said the first vessel is scheduled to be completed by midyear in 2007, and the second vessel should be completed by late 2007.

Hornbeck Offshore Services is a leading provider of technologically advanced, new generation offshore vessels serving the offshore oil and gas industry, primarily in the Gulf of Mexico and in select international markets.

Hornbeck focuses on complex exploration and production activities, including deep-water, deep-well and other logistically demanding projects. Hornbeck is also a leading transporter of petroleum products.

“Our involvement is a direct result of the tremendous performance by the men and women of BIW on our existing Navy contracts,” Dugan Shipway, president of BIW, said in a prepared statement. “Their dedication, hard work and innovative ideas are improving our processes, increasing our efficiency and making it possible for us to consider other types of work. Today, we are delighted to be a part of this new opportunity for Maine.”

Cianbro is one of the East Coast’s largest civil and heavy industrial construction companies. Employee-owned, Cianbro is headquartered in Pittsfield and serves the Eastern seaboard from offices in Maine, Connecticut and Maryland.