Opinion ID: 783502
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: opa90

Text: 2 Maritrans was formed in 1987 to acquire the tugboat and tank barge fleet and related assets of Sonat Marine Inc. Since acquiring its fleet of tank vessels, Maritrans has established itself as a marine petroleum transport company that transports, stores, and distributes oil for petroleum companies and distributors. It operates its fleet of tank barges in the United States coastwise Jones Act trade, transporting over 200 million barrels of crude oil and refined petroleum products annually. 4 3 In 1990, Congress passed OPA90, in response to the massive March 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska. OPA90 requires that all newly constructed tank vessels engaged in marine transportation of oil and petroleum products in the United States be constructed with double hulls. 46 U.S.C.App. § 3703a(a) (Except as otherwise provided in this section, a vessel to which this chapter applies shall be equipped with a double hull....). A double hull design provides a reinforced hull in order to minimize the impact of punctures and hull damage. OPA90 applies to a vessel if the vessel is constructed or adapted to carry, or carries, oil in bulk as cargo or cargo residue and when the vessel is operating on the waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, including the Exclusive Economic Zone. Id. § 3703a(a)(1) & (2). OPA90 also requires that all single hull tank vessels, including tank barges, existing at the time of OPA90's enactment be retrofitted with double hulls in order to qualify for operation on the navigable waters of the United States or the waters of the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States. Id. § 3703a(c). Any single hull tank vessels not retrofitted in that manner must be phased out of service according to a retirement schedule, which began on January 1, 1995. Id. OPA90 specifies that no single hull tank vessel may be operated on the navigable waterways of the United States or the waters of the Exclusive Economic Zone after dates that are established on the basis of a vessel's size and age. Id. § 3703a(a)-(c). 4 OPA90 encompasses all single hull tank barges in operation in Jones Act trade, such as those owned by Maritrans. Approximately 90% of Maritrans' tank vessels are constructed with single hulls or double-bottom hulls and would be forced out of service if not retrofitted with double hulls by their assigned retirement dates. Since 1990, when OPA90 became effective, Maritrans has retrofitted two of its single hull tank barges with double hulls at a cost of approximately $14 million per barge. Maritrans also has sold five of its single hull tank barges for prices of $2.2 to $3.4 million per vessel. In addition, it has collected insurance proceeds from the casualty loss of one single hull tank barge that was involved in a collision in 1996. As will be seen, it was these eight vessels that were the subject of the Court of Federal Claims' takings analysis. 5