Theodore’s Silver Ships Wins First Coast Guard Foreign Military Sales Work for El Salvador, Philippines

THEODORE, Ala. — Theodore boatbuilder Silver Ships Inc. has landed its first U.S. Coast Guard foreign military sales work, winning two projects to build patrol and transport boats for the militaries of El Salvador and the Philippines. The awards carry an estimated value of $12.2 million over five years.

The U.S. Coast Guard’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Program announced the awards Oct. 14. Silver Ships, which builds aluminum workboats at its south Mobile County facility, expects to deliver the first vessels for both projects in late 2027.

El Salvador: up to 16 patrol boats

The first FMS delivery order covers four boats and accessories for El Salvador, totaling $2,664,994. It falls under a five-year blanket purchase agreement with a total estimated value of $10,539,908 for as many as 16 boats.

The selected design is Silver Ships’ AM1100, a center console boat that will be equipped for a mission profile comparable to the Coast Guard’s own multi-mission small patrol craft. The boats will be configured for:

• Counter-illicit drug trafficking operations
• Coastal and intracoastal security patrols
• Search and rescue missions

Each AM1100 will include a weapons mount and lockers, a Furuno navigation package, shock-mitigating seating, advanced lighting and communications equipment, and a trailer built by Gulf Coast Trailers.

The Philippines: four Freedom 26 transport boats

The second project calls for four boats for the Republic of the Philippines, valued at $1,664,911. Silver Ships will build its Freedom 26 model, which will be outfitted to carry equipment and personnel out to visiting ships that need maintenance assistance.

The company describes the Freedom 26 as designed for strength, durability, speed and safety. These boats will be fitted with Suzuki outboard engines, shock-mitigating seating, the Raymarine Axiom2 Pro navigation suite, and advanced lighting and communications equipment.

A first for the company

Silver Ships has built boats for foreign partners through U.S. Navy programs before, but these are its first boats for the Coast Guard’s FMS program.

“We are excited to be involved in these new projects in support of the U.S. Coast Guard’s FMS program. While we have had multiple Navy projects in the past, these are the first Coast Guard boats we will build to support foreign militaries serving in Coast Guard roles,” said Shawn Lobree, Silver Ships’ director of federal programs.

Lobree said both designs are built on proven platforms.

“The El Salvador vessels are based on our highly successful Special Purpose Craft, Law Enforcement (2nd generation) boats we are currently building for the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Philippines boats are based on another successful platform, our Freedom 26, which we have built for several law enforcement customers including the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency,” he said.

How foreign military sales work

Foreign military sales is the U.S. government’s program for selling defense equipment, services and training to allied and partner nations. Under the system, the U.S. government typically handles the purchase on behalf of the foreign customer, contracting with American companies and overseeing delivery. Within that framework, the Coast Guard manages sales of boats and related support for partner nations whose forces perform coast guard-type missions, such as maritime law enforcement, border security and search and rescue.

For American manufacturers, FMS work can open doors to international customers while operating under U.S. government contracting rules. For partner nations, it provides equipment that is often based on designs already in service with U.S. forces, which can simplify training and maintenance.

Both El Salvador and the Philippines face significant maritime security demands. Central America’s Pacific coast is a route for drug trafficking, and the Philippines, an archipelago of thousands of islands, relies heavily on small craft to support operations across its waters.

Four decades on the Alabama coast

Silver Ships has been building boats for military, government and commercial customers for about 40 years. The company says it has been a trusted partner of the U.S. military throughout that history.

In the past two years alone, Silver Ships completed three U.S. Navy FMS projects:

• The Philippines: six 40-foot riverine patrol boats
• Montenegro: four 43-foot coastal fast response boats
• Guatemala: three 43-foot coastal fast response boats

Its domestic work includes the second-generation Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boats for the U.S. Coast Guard, which serve as the basis for the El Salvador design, and Freedom 26 boats for state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

Part of a busy maritime economy

The awards add to the steady stream of vessel construction around Mobile Bay, home to shipyards and boatbuilders ranging from large defense contractors on the Mobile River to smaller aluminum and workboat builders in south Mobile County communities such as Theodore and Bayou La Batre. Smaller builders like Silver Ships often specialize in fast patrol, response and utility boats used by military, law enforcement and commercial operators.

What happens next

Work on the first four boats for each country will begin under the initial orders. The first vessels for both the El Salvador and Philippines projects are expected to be delivered in late 2027. Additional El Salvador boats, up to the 16-boat maximum, could be ordered over the five-year life of the blanket purchase agreement.