Mississippi shipyard awarded $200M contract

The Navy has awarded a $200 million contract to a Pascagoula company for construction of a Navy ship that will carry high-tech radar equipment, U.S. Sen. Trent Lott said.

The Navy awarded the contract to VT Halter Marine on Tuesday. The Pascagoula shipyard will build a vessel used to monitor ballistic missile activity, said Lott, R-Miss.

“This is an important ship that will service a major transition, which will significantly upgrade America’s missile defense capability,” Lott said. “To support this critical mission, the Navy has chosen Mississippi’s skilled shipbuilding workers for execution of this contract, again demonstrating its confidence in our shipyards and affirming the dramatic progress Mississippi has made in our Hurricane Katrina recovery.”