Metal Shark Boats

Metal Shark Boats is an American developer and builder of aluminum-hull vessels that operates shipyards in Jeanerette and Franklin, Louisiana. It offers a variety of vessels ranging from commercial transportation to specialized law enforcement and military applications.

History
The company was founded as Gravois Aluminum Boats in 1986, building primarily small recreational vessels. As sales declined Gravois incorporated Metal Shark in 2005 with the goal of attracting governmental and commercial clients. The company operated out of its Jeanerette facility, building boats up to 60 ft in length primarily for government agencies, notably a $192 million contract for almost 500 small response boats for the United States Coast Guard.

In January 2014, Metal Shark announced that it had purchased a 25 acre site in Franklin, Louisiana on the Charenton Bypass Canal and planned to establish a second shipyard there with the capacity to construct vessels up to 250 ft in length. The facility opened in July 2014. In December 2014, Metal Shark reached an agreement with the Damen Group to market and build Damen-designed ships. As of 2016, Metal Shark had built about a thousand vessels for operators around the world.

Metal Shark won the $54 million contract to build 13 Defiant-class patrol vessels, under the supervision of the US Navy, intended to be given the USA's Caribbean neighbours. The class of vessels is based on the Damen Stan 2606 design—the same design nearby rival Bollinger shipyards used for the US Coast Guard's very successful Marine Protector class of cutters.

Metal Shark manufactures a smaller class of 38 ft patrol vessels, also called the Defiant class. Metal Shark delivered the first of several Defiant class vessels to Senegal and Cabo Verde in February 2018. Those vessels were gifts from the USA.

Operators
Operators of Metal Shark Boats:
 * 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
 * 🇨🇻 Cape Verde
 * Flag of Cape Verde.svg Cape Verdean Armed Forces
 * 🇩🇯 Djibouti
 * Flag of Djibouti.svg Djiboutian Navy
 * 🇬🇾 Guyana
 * Flag of Guyana.svg Guyana Coast Guard
 * 🇸🇳 Senegal
 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine
 * Emblem of the Ukrainian Navy.svg Military Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
 * Ukrainian Sea Guard emblem.svg Ukrainian Sea Guard
 * 🇺🇸 United States
 * Vietnam
 * Emblem of the Ukrainian Navy.svg Military Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
 * Ukrainian Sea Guard emblem.svg Ukrainian Sea Guard
 * 🇺🇸 United States
 * Vietnam
 * Vietnam