PORTLAND – A construction company would like to use the former Bath Iron Works dry dock to finish work on two large oil rigs, creating hundreds of jobs.

Under the proposal, Cianbro Corp. would use the dock on the waterfront’s east end no longer than two years so it won’t interfere with the city’s plans to develop the Oceangate passenger ship terminal.

The oil rig project would bring the city about $1.5 million to $2 million and employ about 800 people. Work is expected to start this summer and continue for 18 months to two years.

Jeffrey Monroe, the city’s director of ports and transportation, said Cianbro would use the site to finish work on two semisubmersible oil rigs being built for drilling projects in warmer climates.

City officials said the Cianbro project provides an ideal interim use while the old industrial piers are transformed into a modern terminal for ferries and ships.

City Councilor Jim Cloutier said he expects the project would win approval from the council. “We certainly welcome industrial work on the waterfront,” Cloutier said. “It should be a big boost for the city’s budget.”

Monroe said that while some people may raise concerns about traffic or noise, those issues are not expected to pose a problem.

The project won’t be particularly loud because much of the sandblasting and welding work already has been done. “They’re going to be putting in the wiring and the systems,” he said.

As for traffic, Cianbro plans to shuttle employees to work from a remote parking lot.

“We sense this is a good deal,” Monroe said. “BIW was a good neighbor for 20 years, and anything that gets done down there will be just as good.”