New American Oil Tankers Great for Traders, Lousy for Owners
- Shipowners are losing profits and vessel long-term contracts
- 100-year-old law complicates domestic waterborne shipping
This article is for subscribers only.
Once rare American-built oil tankers are now plentiful, changing U.S. gasoline flows and giving shipowners headaches.
These brand-new tankers have names like American Endurance, American Freedom, American Liberty and American Pride painted on their sterns. They’re part of a growing fleet of so-called Jones Act ships, named for a law almost a century old that mandates any commodities moved from one U.S. port to another are hauled by vessels manufactured in an American shipyard.