International Tug & Salvage -- July/August 2004
Tom Bender commented: "The current repair activity at Astilleros Bender is only the start of our involvement and corporate development in Mexico. We are currently designing a larger drydock to expand our service to customers in the region and intended to have it in operations within six months."



 
MarineLog, Gulf Coast Headliner -- July, 2004
According to Frank Terrel Jr., Bender's vice president, sales, the company's initial investment in Astilleros Bender is "a little south of $10 million." That investment could rise to $30 million to $40 million, if a new construction facility is developed on the site. Terrel said Bender chose Tampico because it had "many of the fundamentals we were looking for in a shipyard location, including its proximity to Mobile, a good insdustrial base and a well-maintened channel."

A.B. is Bender's first international shipyard venture, but not its first expansion. It already has a controlling interest in Tampa Bay Shipbuilding & Repair, Inc., Tampa, Fla., and has a 30% interest in Austral USA, Mobile, Ala. 

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MarineLog.com -- June 7th, 2004
Bender Shipbuilding & Repair Co., Inc. of Mobile, Alabama has opened a wholly owned subsidiary in Mexico. Currently, it is offering repair services, but Bender President Tom Bender is promising to create "a world-class ship repair and new construction facility in Tampico that will make internationally competitive services and products available to our customers."

Astilleros Bender S. De R.L. De C.V. is located on the south side of the Panuco River 10 kilometers upstream from the Gulf of Mexico and across from the city of Tampico. The yard consists of 125 acres of land and 3,000 feet of river frontage accessed by a 28 foot deep, maintained channel.

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http://marinelog.com/DOCS/NEWSMMIV/MMIVJun7a.html