A new, state-of-the-industry tugboat built by Nichols Brothers Boat Builders in Freeland has been delivered to San Francisco’s Baydelta Marine, a tugboat company specializing in tanker escort.

The boat is the fourth of its class built by Nichols Brothers, which has a fifth under construction.

“This boat has the power and maneuverability that makes it perfect for assisting large ships in restricted waters,” said Bryan Nichols, president of Nichols Brothers. “We believe it fits Baydelta Marine’s needs very well and it has been a pleasure to work with them on this project.”

The most recently completed tug finished final dock and sea trials earlier this month.

Nichols was selected to build the vessel because of its prior experience in building high horsepower tractor tugs in this size range. Nichols also builds fishing boats, passenger craft such as cruise boats and other steel and aluminum craft.

The recently delivered tug is 100 feet long and has an azimuth stern drive propulsion system consisting of two 3,400 horsepower Caterpillar 3516C diesel engines coupled to the Rolls Royce Z-drive system. The propulsion package produced 94 tons of bollard pull and gives the tug exceptional maneuverability. It carries a crew of five and can speed along at 14 knots.